


Danse Inversee

by Nomolosk



Category: Miraculous Ladybug
Genre: AU, Aged up characters, Bullying, F/M, Fluff and Angst, Gabriel is not so bad, Hurt/Comfort, No Miraculouses, Not great either but not so bad, implied and actual sexual assault, mentions of suicide and suicidal thoughts, peeps have an actual clue in this, protective friends, reverse crush
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-12-18
Updated: 2020-05-01
Packaged: 2021-02-26 01:47:15
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings, Graphic Depictions Of Violence
Chapters: 43
Words: 159,716
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/21841651
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Nomolosk/pseuds/Nomolosk
Summary: What if it wasn't just a reverse crush, but a reversal of many things? What if Marinette was the new girl? What if she offended Adrien at their first meeting instead of the other way around? What if the rest of their classmates were more protective and not so gullible?Well that would be a new story entirely, now wouldn't it?Edit: rating bumped up to Mature for implied sexual assault
Relationships: Adrien Agreste/Marinette Dupain-Cheng
Comments: 2151
Kudos: 2027





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

> So of course I say I'm not going to start anything new until the holidays are over, and of course I then get hit with an idea that won't let go of me.
> 
> This is going to be a pretty interesting ride... I've got some idea of where it's going, but I am not much of an advance plotter, so we'll just get to find out together.
> 
> Shall we? ;)

Marinette Dupain-Cheng walked into her new classroom suppressing a shiver. It was a new year, new school, there was technically no reason for her to feel like she was about to be pounced on, but…

There were only two other girls in the classroom at the moment. Despite Marinette’s tendency to get up late, the fact that her new lycee was on the other side of the city from her parents bakery meant she had to catch an early train or risk being late. 

The seats in this classroom were in a bleacher arrangement, each level raised above the one in front of it, with an aisle of steps down the middle. The two girls occupied the first row seats closest to the windows rather than the door. One of them was blonde and looked like she was high-maintenance, wearing clothes Marinette could tell at a glance were designer labels, and a full-face of makeup. The other was a red-head and though Marinette could tell she’d put effort into her outfit, few of the pieces were designed to go together and she ended up looking like she was trying too hard. 

Marinette took her courage in hand and uttered a quiet, “Hello.” 

They looked up from their phones and Marinette saw a calculating look on the blonde’s face, while the red-head stayed fairly neutral. Finally the blonde smiled and said, “New students always sit in the front row. Why don’t you sit there?”

She pointed at the next seat over from her, on the other side of the aisle. Marinette wasn’t quite sure about actually sitting there, especially since the red-head raised an eyebrow at the blonde, nudging her, but she thanked her anyway and put her things down next to the seat, making sure to place the box of macarons from the bakery safely on top of the desk. She sat down and silence engulfed the classroom. Marinette bit her lips, but then decided to go for it. It was a new school. Time for a new Marinette.

“I’m Marinette, by the way. Marinette Dupain-Cheng.”

The blonde looked up from her phone again, but just briefly. “Chloe Bourgeios.”

Marinette’s eyes widened. “The mayor’s daughter?”

“Who else?”

“Oh. Well, it’s nice to meet you.”

The blonde shot her a quick, insincere smile.

“And…?” Marinette pressed, leaning forward a little to look past the blonde at the red-head.

“Oh. This is Sabrina. We’re best friends.”

Chloe said it with more than a hint of disdain in her voice, but the red-head nodded vigorously and smiled, so Marinette decided to believe them for now. After all, she was new at this school. She smiled and said, “It’s nice to meet you, Sabrina.”

Sabrina smiled back at her, but then they both went back to their phones and Marinette sat there, trying to decide how to pass the time. She decided to dig her schedule out and study it, to make sure she had her class order down. The map she’d been given was hopeless, too many copy iterations rendering it smudged beyond recognition. She hoped she could find someone friendly who was willing to show her around for the first few days… from the looks of things, neither Chloe nor Sabrina was going to be that person, though neither had so far shown a tendency toward actual meanness.

Marinette glanced at her box of macarons and decided to save them for people who seemed friendlier.

\----

Adrien sighed as he got out of the car in front of the school. Nino was right behind him, Gorilla having picked him up on their way. Predictably, Nino picked up on his mood and tried to cheer him up.

“Dude are you  _ still _ lamenting those private tutors you used to have?”

“At least when I was homeschooled I could combine classes with photoshoots, and keep myself from being bored when things went inevitably wrong. I can’t believe Dad won’t let me homeschool anymore.” Adrien had been homeschooled until the beginning of college, which was when his mother had disappeared and his father decided he was too sheltered and needed to interact with kids his own age more. Adrien privately thought his father had taken the opportunity to leave his education in the hands of the state so he wouldn’t be constantly distracted by the daily reports of Adrien’s tutors.

“At least now you have actual friends, dude, and not just me and the brat.”

“There is that,” Adrien sighed again, but shot a smile at his best friend. 

Nino was laid-back to the point of not particularly caring if he passed a class or not, but being friends with Adrien had forced him to bring his grades up, if only because Adrien insisted on studying with him at least part of the time they spent together. Nino wanted to be a DJ and thought higher education was, at best, a way to fill the time before he could go pro. He’d had some minor success- a steady weekend gig had led to people calling him to DJ for birthday parties and the like, and his YouTube channel was starting to take off now that he could claim legitimacy by directing his viewers to when and where they could see him in person.

Adrien, on the other hand, took his education very seriously. He didn’t want to be stuck as just a model for his father’s company, even though the pay was extravagant. He knew his looks would only last so long, and he wanted a career outside the modeling world. Especially since he knew Gabriel expected him to take over the company at some point. Sadly, Adrien didn’t have a gift for design, though he could tell a mediocre design from a good one. So he thought the business end would probably be where he ended up. Assuming he didn’t find something he liked better.

Gabriel didn’t really care what he studied, as long as his grades were decent and he kept himself in condition for photoshoots, so Adrien had decided to focus on math and science and kept his extracurriculars athletic. This year he would be doing fencing and basketball again.

They met up with Alya before going into the building. While their college had had an open design, with an open air courtyard in the middle that served as a gym, the Lycee was a more traditional design, all contained under one roof.

When they walked into the classroom, Adrien stopped short. Nino was engrossed in conversation with Alya, so he didn’t notice right away that someone was sitting in Adrien’s seat.

Adrien’s irritation at being at school at all morphed into a quiet fury as he stared at the black-haired girl sitting in his seat. Everyone knew that seat was Adrien’s. It had been ever since college, and most of the kids in his classes had remained the same through the years, though some had transferred to other schools after college, and others had come in. Still, in the second year of lycee, everyone should know that Adrien always sat in the front row, with Nino next to him. 

Yet here was some girl he didn’t even know sitting in his spot. He stalked up to her and leaned in to quietly growl, “You’re sitting in my spot.”

By this time Nino had deposited his things in the next seat over while Alya took the seat behind him, as usual. Both of them stayed quiet and watched the proceedings. They knew not to get involved when Adrien was like this. He was very territorial about classroom seating.

The girl flinched and looked up at him with wide blue eyes. “W-what?”

“You’re sitting in my spot,” Adrien said again, still quiet, but emphatic. She cringed away from his glare.

“B-but… I thought…”

“I don’t care what you thought. That’s my spot, I always sit in the front row, so move. Now.”

The girl looked back at him fearfully, and for a moment Adrien thought he might have to get physical. He didn’t really want to do that, but he wasn’t about to let some fangirl who had no idea what he was even like sit in his seat. He had enough trouble each year getting them to leave him alone while at school without dealing with them hijacking his preferred seat.

Alya came to his rescue, or perhaps she felt pity for the girl. Adrien could have told her not to bother, but he was satisfied to simply get the girl gone. Unfortunately, Alya settled her in the seat next to hers- which happened to be right behind Adrien’s. Great. Now he would have some stupid fangirl staring at the back of his head for at least one whole class period every day.

What was worse was that the girl appeared to be exceptionally clumsy. Alya had to physically pull her up out of the seat, and when she reflexively reached back to grab some kind of pastry box off the desk, she tripped over the step up and fell, scattering cookies everywhere.

“S-sorry! I’m so sorry,” she mumbled, collapsing into her new seat with a red face while Alya just sighed and picked up her book bag to hand it to her.

Adrien ignored her, simply sitting down, frowning a little at how warm the seat was. She must have been sitting there for quite some time. Why hadn’t anyone told her not to? He glanced around the room. 

Chloe and Sabrina were sitting in their usual places, snickering at the spectacle the girl had just provided them. Adrien knew better than to expect them to warn anyone away from his seat. Mylene was there, and Ivan sat behind her, staring lovelornly at the back of her head, while she pretended not to notice. Ivan was irritatingly clueless that Mylene liked him back and refused to do anything about his crush. Max was sitting by Nathaniel, probably because Alix and Kim weren’t there. And that explained why no one had warned the girl. Of all his classmates, Alya, Nino, Kim, and Alix were the ones who Adrien was closest to, and the ones most likely to look out for him. They knew how much he hated to have to deal with the glances of his admirers- which was why he always sat in front- and they would have made sure the girl was gone before he ever came in the room, but…

Oh well. He would just do his best to ignore her. He might not act like the perfect gentleman his mother had expected him to be anymore, but at least his dad never got on to him about defending his boundaries. He did wish Alya had moved her to the back of the classroom, but it really didn’t matter much. If she was a fangirl, she’d be staring at him regardless.

\----

Alya regarded the girl now sitting next to her curiously. She didn’t seem to be a fangirl, although Alya couldn’t think of any other reason the girl would have chosen to sit where everyone knew Adrien liked to sit. For many of his fangirls, the opportunity to sit in Adrien’s seat, however briefly, would have been more than they could resist.

But this girl seemed shaken by the encounter, instead of elated. Adrien had a tendency to be blunt to the point of rudeness with his fans because honestly, sometimes that was the only way to get through to them short of physically shoving them away. Still, no matter how rude he was, they always left his presence with glowing smiles, elated to be berated by him. Alya knew what she thought about the stupidity of those girls. But this one… she was short, with black hair, and she sank into herself as soon as she sat down in the new seat. She wasn’t elated. In fact, she seemed scared.

“Hey,” Alya said, nudging her arm. “So, uh… why were you sitting there? Everyone knows that’s Adrien’s seat.”

The girl shrank into herself even more. “I… uh, someone said that new students always sit in the front row,” she said so quietly that Alya had to lean in to hear her.

“So you’re new? Ok, that makes sense you didn’t know. But…” Alya stopped, her gaze sliding from the new girl’s embarrassed face to that of Chloe, who was still snickering with Sabrina, looking at something on Chloe’s phone.

“Chloe told you to sit there, didn’t she,” Alya said. The new girl gave a small nod, clearly miserable. Alya decided to take pity on her. Adrien was her friend, and Nino’s best friend, sure, but that didn’t mean Alya had to be mean to someone who hadn’t known better. She’d be friendly and see what the new girl was like. Maybe she would be good friend material.

“I’m Alya,” she said, holding out her hand. The new girl finally looked at her, clearly blinking back tears, and Alya felt her heart going out to her.

“M-Marinette,” she said, offering a shy smile.

“Don’t let Chloe give you a bad impression of our class,” Alya said smiling back. “She thinks she can do anything just because she’s the mayor’s daughter, but most people don’t take any crap from her. I certainly don’t.”

Marinette’s eyes flickered to the back of Adrien’s head, and Alya added. “Don’t worry about Adrien either. His bark is worse than his bite. He likes to sit in the front row so he doesn’t have to worry about distracting people.”

Marinette seemed puzzled by this, and Alya figured she’d been so intimidated that she hadn’t noticed how handsome the blonde boy was. “So, why are you transferring here?”

Marinette shot her a look that had Alya raising her eyebrows. “I… I needed a change of scene, I guess? I,” she cleared her throat and looked away. “I’ve been in classes with the same people ever since I was little, and… well, let’s just say I want to meet new people.”

Alya nodded. “Makes sense. This is a pretty good school, they actually have proper discipline here. Back in college? Man that place was corrupt. It’s how Chloe got as bad as she currently is. In college none of the teachers or even the principle stood up to her because she was always willing to call her father if she didn’t get what she wanted. I actually got expelled once because of her, and even though the expulsion was reversed, I still can’t believe it happened in the first place. It was a completely bogus charge!”

Marinette blinked first at her, then looked at the blonde, then back to Alya. “What on earth did she think you did?”

Alya rolled her eyes. “All I did was take a little picture of her locker. It was for the school blog! I was doing a piece on trendy ways to make your school locker less boring. But she blew it waaaay out of proportion and claimed I invaded her privacy and made some bs spiel about how it was theft of her soul.”

Marinette frowned. “All over a picture of her locker, which anyone passing by could glance into any time she had it open?”

“Yup.”

“That’s ridiculous! And they expelled you for that?”

“Only for a day, and it didn’t go on my permanent record, but… yeah.”

“Wow. I’m glad I didn’t go to that school,” Marinette said, “I would have been permanently expelled by the end of the first week if that’s how they handled bullying. On the other hand, that would have gotten me out of there, so...”

Alya frowned at that, which she wasn’t entirely sure she’d heard correctly, but that was when the teacher came in, so they couldn’t talk anymore. Her phone buzzed and she looked down to see a message from Nino.

\----

Adrien heard Alya quietly talking to the new girl behind him and as his irritation subsided, he started to feel a little guilty. The feeling didn’t lessen when Nino leaned closer to say, “Dude, harsh much?”

The irritation surged again with that remark. “She was in my seat. Everyone knows not to sit in my seat.”

“I think she’s a new student, bro. How would she know?”

“Anyone would have told her.”

“Even Chloe?”

Adrien shot a sidelong look at the spoiled daughter of the mayor whom he had the mixed blessing of calling a childhood friend.

“Ok, maybe not Chloe. Or Sabrina, since she’s still attached at the hip to Chloe. But anyone else.”

“If that were really true, I think she wouldn’t have been sitting there when we came in. Sure if one of us had come in first, we would have warned her not to sit there, but apparently no one else did.”

“You don’t know that. Maybe she just ignored them.” Adrien was already getting tired of this. Sure, maybe he was rude when he told her to move, but he stood by his actions. Back in college he’d tried the soft approach to get his fangirls to leave him alone. It had never worked. They didn’t back off until he was downright rude to them. So, now this one knew what to expect if she tried to corner him like all the others over the years.

“You think she’s a fangirl, then? Just taking your seat because it’s yours and it’s the closest she’ll ever be to  _ being _ yours?” Nino’s tone was mocking.

“Of course I think that. Ninety percent of the girls I meet that I don’t already know through class or modeling are like that, after all. In fact, at least half of the models are like that. They don’t care about me, they just love the image. The ideal.” He sat back, slumping against the backrest. “Or all they care about is what I can do for them. They figure if they can get close to me, I can get them close to whatever it is they want.”

Nino gave him a look. “I get it, man. But it’s still messed up that you’re sixteen and have that kind of worldview.”

The teacher walked in and Adrien turned his attention to the front, resolved to ignore everything but the lesson for the next hour. Nino slid his phone out of his pocket under cover of the desk and typed a quick message to his girlfriend.

DJBoyo: wats with the new girl? She fangirling?

\----

When class ended, having been basically about nothing but the syllabus and what they were expected to bring to class every day, Marinette hesitantly turned to Alya as everyone was packing their things to go to the next class.

“Um… what’s your next class? I have my schedule, but the map is kinda…”

Alya snorted but smiled. Here was her opportunity to start figuring out if Marinette was a fangirl, or just ignorant. “That map has been copied from copies for years and is practically illegible. Honestly, they should just put the map on the website already. Here, let me see your schedule.”

Marinette handed it over. 

“Ok, looks like we have History and English together, but everything else is different. Oh hang on… I think you might have science with Adrien. He and Nino are in the same science and math classes, although Nino barely manages to scrape by while Adrien is usually at the top of the class.”

Marinette paled a little and shot a look at Adrien and Nino heading out to their next classes.

“But girl, what are all these art courses? You have like, three. I didn’t know you could take more than one.”

“Oh, um…” Marinette mumbled something.

“What?”

“I… I want to be a designer,” Marinette said a little louder, looking uncomfortable. “P-part of the reason I transferred here was because my old school wouldn’t let me take more than one art class, and… well, I want to get good at a lot of different styles before I apply to the design schools.”

“That’s cool,” Alya said, although she looked speculatively at the door Adrien and Nino had just left through. “Well, I’ll walk you to your next class- mine’s right next door to yours- and I’ll look for someone there who can take you to the one after that.”

“Wow, um… thanks. You don’t have to do that.”

Alya shrugged. “I’m just being nice.”

For some reason Marinette’s chin trembled a little at that, but she quickly smiled and offered her a cookie from her pastry box. There was only one left, but Alya accepted it. She bit into it and the creamy sweetness of sugar combined with the tartness of cherry exploded on her tongue. She’d intended to eat it politely, but this… this deserved to be savored. The cookie was gone almost too quickly, and Alya found herself lamenting the loss of the others.

“Wow,” she managed, once the cookie was gone. “That was the best macaron I ever had! Girl, where did you get these?”

Marinette smiled but hunched her shoulders a bit as they headed towards the hallway. “My parents own a bakery. They always make me macarons for the first day of school. Papa says the best way to make friends is to offer them something sweet.”

“Well if that’s the way it is, then  _ I _ am your new best friend,” Alya said, laughing and pulling Marinette’s arm through her own. “Hey, do you want to have lunch with me, Nino, and Adrien? Nino’s my boyfriend,” she confided, leaning her head in close. “And even though I like Adrien, he is a huge dork, and the pun wars and arguments over anime make me crazy sometimes. I could sure use a girl friend to balance out the testosterone.”

Marinette looked down and seemed to pull away a little. “I don’t know… I don’t want to bother Adrien. He already hates me.”

Alya smiled, making a mental tic in the plus column, and pulled her back. “He doesn’t hate you. He doesn’t know you! For that matter, I don’t really know you. But come to lunch and that could change,” Alya coaxed. She looked closely, studying the girl’s expression as she waited for a response.

“I… I don’t think it’s a good idea.”

Alya shrugged. “Ok, guess it’ll just be me and you then.”

Marinette looked at her in surprise. “Really? You’d ditch your boyfriend just to hang out with the new girl?”

“I have a feeling about you. And besides, it’s not like Nino and I spent the whole summer apart. We saw each other pretty regularly, so… Anyway, I want to know more about the girl whose parents make such amazing macarons. Seriously, I’m probably going to dedicate a whole blog to them.”

Marinette laughed at that, and Alya was glad to know the shy girl  _ could _ laugh at something. She’d been so quiet and almost jumpy since Adrien growled at her.  _ Chloe can be a real jerk sometimes, _ Alya mused, watching the girl beside her.  _ She probably told her to sit there just so she and Adrien would get off on the wrong foot. _

They chatted about this and that for the rest of the short walk to their next classrooms before separating at the door. By that time Alya had decided Marinette probably wasn’t a fangirl, or, if she was (because she did want to be a fashion designer, so there was always the possibility), she wasn’t one of the rabid ones. If anything, she was a bit fragile and needed protecting and bolstering until she found her feet at the new school and started to make friends.


	2. Chapter 2

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Everyone tries to move on, even as Nino and Alya are determined to find out more about Marinette.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> These first few chapters are going to be pretty slow, plot-wise. I'm establishing a new environment and how the characters are the same, but changed. Bear with me!

Adrien felt a wave of relief when he walked into his next class and not only saw an empty front row, but saw Alix and Kim sitting in the second row seats. Nino had a different class that period, but Adrien slid into his usual spot without complaint, then turned around to exchange fist bumps with his two athletic friends. For a while after he’d first met them he wasn’t sure if they would make good friends or not. They were very competitive, especially with each other, but he found that as long as he didn’t get involved in their personal competitions, they kept him on his toes and were a lot of fun to hang around.

“Yo, model boy.”

“Hey, Adrien. Heard from Kagami at all?” 

Alix had nothing but admiration for the feisty asian girl that was usually Adrien’s fencing partner. The two had struck up an unlikely friendship, given Kagami’s controlling mother. For a while Adrien had considered trying to date Kagami, but the fact that her mother never let her go anywhere, preferring she stay at home if she wasn’t at proscribed activities or events, made that too difficult. 

“She’s been in Japan all summer studying with a sensei there. I have a feeling she’s going to kick my butt the next time we fence, but I’m looking forward to it anyway. Everyone’s gotten better, but most of the other fencers still aren’t up to my skill level.”

“Yeah! You get ‘em, Agreste!” Kim’s enthusiasm made Adrien grin. As competitive as Kim could be, he also got excited to see anyone excel at sports, even ones he didn’t participate in himself. He was a true enthusiast, and Adrien had a sudden idea.

“Hey Kim, you ever think about being a sports caster? I bet you’d be really good at it. You know all the stats and players, and you’ve got natural enthusiasm.”

Kim sat back with a thunderstruck expression. “Huh.” He fell silent, obviously thinking the idea over.

Alix cackled. “Nice one, Adrien, I think you broke him.”

“Nah, his one remaining brain cell is just rebooting,” Adrien joked. “How was your first class?”

“Eh, nothing special. It’s ancient history this year, and well…”

“Free pass?”

“Pretty much. At least I won’t have to worry about getting a good grade in that one.”

“Nice.”

“What about you?”

Adrien grimaced. “It was fine.”

“Your face says otherwise.”

“It’s just… someone was sitting in my seat, that’s all.”

“Ooo, I’m feeling a past-tense burn for whatever poor soul it was.”

“Hey, I didn’t get nasty, I just told her to move.”

Alix raised an eyebrow. “Fangirl?”

Adrien shrugged. “I think so. Alya and Nino don’t though.”

“Really? Huh.”

Adrien waved it off. “Whatever, it doesn’t really matter.” 

The new girl wasn’t his problem any more, and hopefully wouldn’t be for the remainder of the school year.

\----

Alya shot some quick texts to Nino as she settled into a seat beside Mylene. This was a communications class, and she wanted to get it out of the way so she could pay full attention.

WifiQueen: Not fangirling. Wants to be a designer, so she might know about model boy, but as far as I can tell, not obsessed with him.

WifiQueen: didn’t seem to recognize him anyway

WifiQueen: finding out more @ lunch

WifiQueen: aksed if she wanted to eat w/ all us

WifiQueen: *asked

WifiQueen: she said no. pretty good sign there

She put her phone down and turned to get her tablet out of her bag. Some of their courses still used physical books, but with a communications class, anything published was already on it’s way to being obsolete unless it was history, so the school saw no point in buying physical books when they could pay a flat fee and let the students access that information digitally.

Mylene looked over as Alya got herself set up.

“Hey, is that new girl ok? She looked pretty upset.”

“Hm? Oh yeah, she’s ok. I think Adrien scared her, and I’m not sure but I think there might be something going on with her last school there, too. Anyway, I’m going to eat lunch with her to find out more. Maybe even see if she’s best friend material.”

“That’s nice,” Mylene looked down. “I’m sorry I didn’t warn her about the seat. I would have, if I’d noticed, but… well, Ivan walked me to class…”

Alya’s mouth quirked up into a crooked smile. “Is he still unwilling to commit to anything?”

“Yes! And it’s not like I haven’t tried everything I can think of, he just won’t take a hint and actually ask me out. We’ve hung out together a few times this summer, but always with a group of others and anytime I suggested doing something just the two of us, he always backs out at the last minute. It’s a good thing he’s still the drummer for Kitty Section. At least I can see him at rehearsals.” Mylene sighed.

Alya patted her shoulder. “He’ll get there. I have to admit, though… I’m glad Nino and I accidentally got locked in the back areas of the zoo two years ago. He finally got up the courage to ask me out. Hey! Do you want me to make something happen?”

Mylene blushed. “As much as I want him to have an epiphany, no. What worked for you and Nino probably wouldn’t work for us.”

“Fair enough.”

“And hey, let me know about the new girl. What’s her name anyway?”

“Marinette. Her parents have a bakery, and it’s a shame she didn’t get to give out those cookies she brought. There was only one left, but I swear it was the best macaron I’ve ever had.”

Mylene looked interested in that, but the teacher called them to order just then.

Alya paid close attention, since the teacher took the class time to outline all the various projects they’d be working on through the year, and by the end of class Alya already had ideas for some of them.

\----

Nino read the texts from Alya and winced. From what he could see, Adrien was firmly convinced the girl who sat in his spot was just another fangirl, and he was going to take some convincing if she really wasn’t. Still, Alya was the best person to actually find out. She had instincts about people, and her determination to be a journalist gave her incentive to find out for sure before passing a final verdict.

The fact the girl wanted to be a fashion designer was a strike against her in his book, and he knew it would be in Adrien’s, too. Any aspiring fashion designer was familiar with the Gabriel Brand and Adrien, much to his continuous disgust, was the face of that brand. Even if she hadn’t meant to sit in Adrien’s seat that morning, it looked bad that she had. It was good she hadn’t jumped at the chance to eat lunch with Adrien, though. Those things balanced each other out in Nino’s mind, but he knew Adrien would be hard to convince.

He knew Alya would be thorough, and he hoped the new girl really wasn’t another fangirl. Adrien needed to know more people either didn’t care about him much (thus treating him like a normal kid), or liked him for who he was instead of what he looked like. 

His next class was a digital music study, and he was actually looking forward to this one, since his DJing skills would probably give him at least a small leg up on the other students. He sat back and prepared to soak up the teacher’s knowledge.

\----

Marinette took a seat in her first art class of the day, making sure to avoid the first row seats, nervous but hopeful. Alya had been friendly, even though she was apparently very good friends with the rude boy who had demanded his seat back from her without so much as a please. 

She tried not to tear up again at the memory of how he’d glared at her like she’d committed a heinous crime instead of simply sitting in the front row. A red-haired boy she recognized from the previous class came in carrying a large sketchbook and glanced around the room before taking a seat next to her.

“Hey,” he said, holding out a hand. “I’m Nathanael.”

“Marinette,” she said, smiling a little and cautiously shaking his hand. 

“So, art degree?” he asked.

“Um, yeah I guess,” Marinette replied, fighting back a blush. She had to fight herself to get that much out. No one in her previous school thought much of her ambitions, but she was determined to go all the way. And she knew she needed a thicker skin if she wanted to succeed. No better time to start than now, when she was finally in an environment where she wasn’t automatically blamed and derided for everything.

“Where’s your sketchbook?” the boy asked casually. Marinette tried not to tense up at the question.

“Oh, I… I wasn’t sure if we were supposed to bring them today.” That and she’d had sketchbooks ruined before. She’d wanted to scope out the school and decide if she dared to bring them at all.

Nathanael just nodded and said, “Yeah, the teachers get cranky if you don’t bring them. They don’t even like it if you only bring the finished sketch. They want to see your process, especially if we’re working on new techniques.”

“I’ll bring them tomorrow,” Marinette said, smiling more widely. “What’s your focus?”

Nathanael pulled his sketchbook up onto the table and opened it to let her see inside.

“Comics! That’s cool. Do you have to do a lot of character studies, or do you have it pretty much worked out? It looks like these are pretty well developed.” Marinette complimented, flipping through the pages depicting everything from comic panel layout sketches and character expression studies, to full-page colored scenes.

Nathanael smiled and blushed a bit. “I’ve got a partner who does the writing and dialogue, I just do the drawing. But I only have to do character studies when we’re introducing a new character. I’ve got plenty of references for the established characters. We’ve got our comic in a few shops around town, but it hasn’t taken off big or anything.”

“That’s still really awesome,” Marinette said, sending him a wide and, for once, genuine smile. “I’ll have to buy some!”

Nathanael blushed harder and looked away. “So, um, what’s your focus?”

Marinette’s smile faded and she felt her shoulders hunching reflexively before forcing herself to straighten up. She took a deep breath. “I want to be a fashion designer, so mostly I do clothing designs, but I’ve done some still lifes and street scenes, too.”

“Awesome! Maybe you can help me with what my characters should be wearing some time? Marc’s been complaining that they never change their clothes,” he grinned sheepishly.

Marinette surprised herself by smiling back at him. “Sure, I’d love to help. Maybe after classes, though,” she said, as the teacher walked into the room.


	3. Chapter 3

Adrien could tell by Nino’s expression that he and Alya were meddling again. They’d meddled during the brief period he had considered dating Kagami too, especially Alya, who sometimes got a little too zealous for Adrien’s taste. And judging by what had passed this morning, it was meddling that concerned the fangirl. He wished they’d just forget the whole thing, honestly. He just wanted to be able to go to school without drama for once.

“Hey, Nino! How was that digital music class?” he said with a bright smile, trying to deflect away from a topic he didn’t want to discuss right off the bat. “I bet it’s the first time you’ve actually enjoyed being at school!”

Nino lit up immediately and Adrien saw a genuine spark of enthusiasm in his eye. “It was awesome, bro! I really thought I knew about most of the software available for mixing and remixing, and how to use it, but… wow. There’s so much more out there, and it’s all specialized for different purposes and effects, although obviously you  _ can _ use it for everything if you don’t have options.”

Adrien let Nino wax poetic on how much he was going to learn that term, smirking to himself for successfully avoiding an awkward topic. He still stood by his actions, but as the day had gone on, he could admit that he’d overreacted. After all, the girl hadn’t thrown herself at him as so many of his fangirls did. All she’d done was sit in his seat and then freeze when he tried to get her to move. And the more he thought about it, he didn’t remember seeing the kind of obsessive adoration on her face he was used to seeing from his fangirls. Instead she’d looked… afraid, maybe? 

He sighed as he and Nino walked into the science room, scanning automatically for familiar faces. He always sat by Nino in the front, but he did like to know if any friends shared his classes. Unfortunately, he saw the fangirl sitting a few rows back next to Juleka. Rose wasn’t anywhere in sight, which explained why Juleka wasn’t sitting next to her instead. Fortunately, the girl was currently chatting with his tall friend and hadn’t noticed his arrival. Another point in favor of her not being a fangirl. Most of them kept a sharp eye out for him in any of their classes he happened to share, even if they didn’t approach him.

He didn’t do anything to draw her attention, either, merely putting his things down on his desk and getting ready for the lesson. Nino got his own things together then nudged his elbow. When Adrien looked at him, he nodded his head slightly toward the back. Adrien rolled his eyes and didn’t say anything, just turned back to face the front of the class.

\----

“So, if you want to be a designer, you probably know about the Agrestes, right?” Juleka asked, once Marinette had finished her borderline rant about haute couture houses and their policy of using only stick-thin models, and how  _ she _ planned to use various body types when she had her own line. This was in response to Juleka mentioning casually that she had modeling aspirations. Marinette had first complimented her on the ambition and then gotten tangled up somehow in the whys and wherefores of how models got picked, which led to the rant about industry standards and how they ought to change. Juleka just smiled at her passion.

“Well, of course, everyone who follows fashion knows about the Agrestes,” she said now. “Gabriel Agreste is one of my idols, actually. I really like how he manages to make his everyday wear stylish without being uncomfortable,” Marinette replied. “What I wouldn’t give for a chance to look through one of his pattern books…” she mused, resting her chin in one hand and smiling slightly. “I bet I would learn so much.”

Juleka smiled and nodded, but also typed a note on her phone. Alya had texted all the members of the old girl squad from college- the ones who’d banded together against Chloe and her extreme entitlement. She wanted them to be friendly to this new girl and find out if she was going to be good friend material, or if she was just a fangirl- albeit a smarter one than the usual stamp- who was looking for some kind of in with Adrien.

What Marinette had just said was a mark against her in that respect. And yet, Juleka had been watching her face the whole time they’d been talking and even though Adrien and Nino had walked in five minutes ago, Marinette hadn’t once glanced at him. If she was so familiar with the Agreste brand, shouldn’t she recognize the face of it? And if she was truly willing to do most anything to get her hands on one of his father’s pattern books, why wasn’t she throwing herself at Adrien like all his other fans and hangers on tried to do?

Juleka decided to test the waters a little more. “So if you had a chance to meet Adrien Agreste…” she probed.

Marinette jerked her head up. “Why? Do you know him?”

Juleka hid a wince. Another black mark.

“He plays keyboard in my brother’s band.”

“Wow! That’s so cool! You must know him well, then.”

Juleka nodded slowly, studying the girl’s face.

Marinette sighed. “Well, obviously I’d like to meet him someday, but I’m really more interested in the clothes. Besides… I wouldn’t want him to think I’m just another of his fangirls,” she said, her mouth twisting into a grimace. “I mean, he’s handsome, yes, but everyone’s entitled to their own life, you know? Honestly, I don’t know how he puts up with it. I know I couldn’t in his place. They act like he doesn’t need any privacy! Did you know that someone once stole a pair of shoes he wore at a photoshoot and tried to sell them online? Ugh.”

Juleka was indeed aware of that event, since she and Luka had teamed up with Alya and Nino to calm Adrien down after he learned about it. The person in question had been a fellow model for the teen lines, and he’d been blacklisted from working any Gabriel photoshoots for the rest of his career after that stunt. And since Gabriel was highly regarded in fashion circles, it had effectively ended his career.

“So you don’t want to meet him?”

Marinette considered this. “Maybe once I’m out of school and actually designing. I just feel like it would be cheating, you know? I like his father’s brand, it really inspires me, but… I don’t want  _ anyone _ to be able to accuse me of riding someone’s coattails,  _ ever _ , even if it’s not true” she finished, with such a look of determination that Juleka was moved to actually raise her eyebrows.

She typed out another note. If that was the way Marinette really felt, and not just a show she was putting on for Juleka’s benefit, then that was a serious point in her favor. It occurred to Juleka that if Marinette did actually focus more on the clothes than the models, she could be excused for not recognizing Adrien at a glance, even though his face was regularly plastered all over Paris on billboards the size of houses.

Adrien tended to dress quite differently at school than he did for photoshoots. Juleka glanced toward the front to see that Adrien was indeed wearing his usual unremarkable ensemble of graphic t-shirt paired with slouchy jeans and sneakers, none of which bore his father’s label. It was one of the many compromises Gabriel had made to get him to attend public school without complaint. Even his hair was slightly messy, instead of the expertly coiffed look he sported in his ads. Adrien was forced to wear the brand name clothes for photoshoots and events, but he refused to do so in his regular public life. 

Marinette reclaimed her attention just then by asking about Luka’s band, and Juleka smiled at her as she replied. Even if this new girl  _ was _ putting on a show, she was doing a great job of it, appearing sincere in her interest in other people. All in all, she was making a pretty good impression, and Juleka found herself hoping she was actually genuine. Because if she was, she’d make a pretty good friend. She couldn’t wait to introduce her to Rose and get her girlfriend’s opinion, too. Rose seemed like an airhead on the surface, but she was really good at looking through the surface to the person within.

\----

Alya was glad to see a smile on Marinette’s face when they met outside the lunchroom. Juleka had texted her a brief message after the last class that consisted of a shrug emoji followed by a thumb’s up. In Juleka speak that meant she approved of Marinette… for now. Alya felt much the same. So she’d go forward with hope.

“Hey, how were your morning classes?”

“They were great!” Marinette said with a huge smile. “It’s amazing how nice everyone is here. I can hardly believe it…” Then the girl shook herself and looked at Alya. “What about you?”

“My communications class is going to be a lot of hard work, but I think it’ll be fun, too. The science, though… eh,” Alya waggled her hand. “I’m not the best at science, and this year I won’t have Adrien to help me study.”

Marinette’s smile faded a bit at the mention of Adrien, but otherwise she ignored it. “What are you taking? It’s physics for me, which isn’t my favorite- I’d like to have taken biology, but I couldn’t because of the art classes I wanted to take.”

“Wish we could switch then, ‘cause I’ve got biology!” Alya laughed. 

They made their way through the lunchline and headed for a table where Mylene and Rose were already sitting.

“Hey girls, this is Marinette,” Alya said as they put their trays down. “Marinette, this is Mylene, who you might recognize from our first period class, and that’s Rose. Rose and Juleka usually come as a pair, but their classes are a little different this year.”

Marinette offered a shy wave of her hand and a quiet, “Hi.”

“Juleka will be here soon,” Rose announced, “she’s already in line.”

“Huh, I wonder why she didn’t just walk here with Marinette?” Alya wondered aloud. “Don’t you have the same class right before lunch?”

Marinette nodded and her face tightened a little. Alya frowned slightly. As hard as she was trying to look comfortable, Alya could tell she was anything but.

“She had to run by her locker for some  _ supplies _ ,” Rose explained, then stood up to wave to the taller girl. Alya decided to ignore Marinette’s tension for now and hope it would dissipate on it’s own once she saw the other girls were friendly.

“So Mylene was telling me Ivan still has his head stuck up his butt,” Alya said, drawing attention away from Marinette and causing the conversation to shift toward everyone’s love interests. 

After a little back and forth and good natured ribbing between them all, Rose leaned across the table and poked Marinette, who, Alya thought, flinched a little too violently at the contact.

“What about you, Marinette? Do you have a boyfriend? Girlfriend? Both?”

Marinette pasted on a hasty smile and said, “Neither. No one’s ever been interested, and honestly I wouldn’t have wanted to date anyone at my old school.”

“What about this one? We’ve got some hotties roaming around these halls,” Alya probed.

Marinette looked distinctly uncomfortable. “It’s really too soon to tell, don’t you think? I haven’t even been here a full day yet.”

“You’re cute, though,” Mylene put in. “I bet you’ll have some attention before too long.”

Marinette smiled half-heartedly, and Alya took that as a reason to let the conversation move on to other topics. Marinette stayed quiet until the upcoming video-game tournament was mentioned.

“Nino and I are going to enter as a couple,” Alya stated, and the other girls nodded. The two were something of a sensation when it came to the dance party games.

“What about you, Marinette? Do you play any video games?”

And for the first time, Alya saw Marinette actually smirk. “I’m pretty good at Ultimate Mecha Strike,” she said.

“Ooo, you’re going to have some stiff competition with that game,” Mylene said. “Max has been the Ultimate Mecha Strike Champion for years.”

“Well, he hasn’t played against me yet,” Marinette said cockily. All the girls laughed and cheered at that.

“Max hasn’t had any real competition since Adrien came along,” Juleka mused. “If you can actually challenge him, I bet he’ll really enjoy it!”

“So when is this tournament?” Marinette asked.

“Next month. Think you’ll be ready to take on the best player I’ve ever seen?”

“Piece of cake,” Marinette said confidently.

“What’s a piece of cake?” A deeper voice said from behind them. Alya looked up to see Adrien and Nino had come over, having finished their lunch. When she looked back down, it was to see Marinette pale and clutching the edge of the table with white knuckles.

“Marinette’s going to challenge Max at Ultimate Mecha Strike,” Rose said. 

“Is that so?” Adrien sounded disinterested. “Don’t get your hopes up, then.”

Alya had been a little concerned that Marinette might faint, but at that, her color came back and she abruptly turned to look up at Adrien.

“Maybe you better tell Max not to get  _ his _ hopes up,” she said. “Because I haven’t been beaten at that game since I was ten.”

“Yeah, you tell ‘im, dudette!” Nino laughed, while Adrien just raised a skeptical eyebrow. Alya saw Marinette go pale again, her eyes widening as she turned back to the table.

“I can’t believe I said that…” she whispered, expression stricken. She swallowed hard, then stood up, taking her tray. “Excuse me,” she gasped out before speed walking to the tray return and then out into the halls. Alya looked around the table to see confused and concerned faces, before going after Marinette herself.

She was a little worried she wouldn’t find her, since the girl could have easily gotten herself lost in the halls, but Marinette was slumped up against some lockers a little way down the hall, slapping her cheeks a little and mumbling to herself. 

“Come on! Get it together!” Alya heard as she got closer. “It’s a new school, no one’s going to-”

“Hey, you okay?” Alya asked. Marinette jerked upright and stared at her, biting her lip. After a moment she slumped back and sighed.

“Yeah.”

“Are you sure? Because honestly, you’ve been acting a little… scared.” Alya said, edging closer.

Marinette’s chin trembled and she looked away, passing a hand over her eyes. “It’s nothing.”

“It’s not nothing,” Alya said firmly. “You haven’t said it outright, but… I’m guessing you had some bullies at your old school. Am I right?”

Marinette nodded slowly.

“Bad?” Alya asked quietly.

“Bad enough,” Marinette said. “If I’d said  _ anything _ like that at my old school…” She raised a trembling hand to her eyes again.

“And no one did anything?”

Marinette let out a bitter laugh.

“I’m guessing that’s a no.” Alya leaned up against the lockers next to her. “Well, things are different here,” she said. “The admins have some pretty strict rules about bullying, and there’s a comprehensive list of what constitutes bullying in the handbook. But listen,” she said, turning to the black-haired girl. “I like you.  _ We _ like you. Sure we don’t know you that well yet, but if you give us a chance, I think you’ll like us, too.”

Marinette laughed again. “God, you’re all so…  _ nice _ . I keep expecting… I don’t even know.” She gave Alya a watery smile. “I’m sorry for dissolving on you,” she said, indicating her wet eyes.

“Don’t worry about it,” Alya said with an answering smile. “Everyone calls me the mom of our group. It’s kind of my job to be the shoulder.” She hesitated before going on. “Do you… need someone to talk to? About it? I mean…”

Marinette shook her head. “I have a therapist. He’s actually been really helpful. And my parents are pretty good about understanding what I’ve been through. I just… still have a hard time believing people will actually like me,” she said quietly.

“Baby steps, right?” Alya said, just as quietly. Marinette nodded. “Is there anything we should avoid doing around you? I know sometimes the smallest things can trigger someone…”

Marinette frowned. “Um. I really don’t like going into an empty bathroom,” she said slowly, “Or people sneaking up behind me.”

Alya decided if she ever met the people at Marinette’s old school she was going to have words with them. Maybe more than that. Either way, she was convinced Marinette wasn’t just some fangirl of Adrien’s- not the way she’d reacted around him just now. And what was certain was that she needed an understanding group of girl-friends.

“Okay,” she said, hooking an arm through Marinette’s. “Well, you have a ready-made group of friends here if you feel comfortable with that. And I promise we won’t push you too hard on things you’re uncomfortable with. But we’d really like to hang out and get to know you better.”

Marinette smiled softly. “You just want access to my Papa’s cookies,” she joked, hesitantly.

“I’m pretty sure I won’t say no to cookies, like, ever,” Alya joked back. “But seriously- that’s not why I like you.”

A moment passed.

“Ready to go back?”

“Is my face all red and splotchy?”

“Hmm, nope! All good.”

“... okay, then.”

Arm in arm, they headed back toward the lunch room.


	4. Chapter 4

When Alya got up to go after the new girl, Rose also stood and came around to smack Adrien’s arm.

“What was that for?” Adrien asked, more than a little surprised.

“You scared her!” Rose said, stalking back to her seat beside Juleka.

“I did not,” he insisted.

“Oh, I suppose she ran out of here because she’s so smitten with you then, is that it?”

“How should I know? Besides, I thought you were all trying to find out if she’s a fangirl or not?” Adrien said, trying to deflect attention back to the new girl.

The girls all shared glances before Juleka spoke up. “Well… she does want to be a fashion designer-”

‘I knew it!” Adrien said under his breath, feeling vindicated.

“-But I really don’t think she’s your fangirl,” Juleka finished. “If what she told me is true, she doesn’t even want to meet you until she’s done with school and working because she doesn’t want people saying she’s taken advantage to get her position.”

Adrien stared at her. “Oh come on, you don’t really believe that, do you?”

“Well, she doesn’t seem to recognize you,” Mylene said. “And I doubt she would have run away just now if she wanted to take advantage of you.”

Adrien looked at the girls, noting the sure expressions on their faces. He turned to his best friend. “Come on, Nino, back me up here. Isn’t her designer dream proof that I should avoid her?”

Nino shrugged. “Could be. But the girls have a point, too. Maybe you should back off for now, and decide later. Just see what happens with her. Besides, she hasn’t bothered you yet, aside from sitting in your seat.”

Adrien nodded slowly. “... okay. That makes sense. Alright, I’ll give her a chance to prove she’s not a fangirl.”

He spotted Alya coming back arm in arm with the new girl and nudged Nino. “I guess that’s our cue to leave, then.”

\----

However comforted she was by Alya’s presence and understanding, Marinette couldn’t help but be relieved to see the two boys leaving as they came back into the lunchroom. It was going to be hard enough explaining her reaction to the girls at the table- she didn’t want her humiliation to be known by the rude boy if she could help it. The other one didn’t seem so bad, although she hadn’t talked to him at all. But if she was right, he was Alya’s boyfriend, and she had a feeling Alya wouldn’t go out with someone who was that rude on a regular basis.

Marinette sat back down and the girl named Rose smiled at her. “Are you ok? Adrien didn’t scare you, did he?”

Marinette tried to suppress a shiver. He’d startled her when he’d come up behind and spoken, bringing up echoes of bad memories, but she couldn’t say that he’d scared her, exactly. And she had managed to stand up for herself for once.

She smiled and shook her head. “Not… exactly,” she admitted. “I don’t like people coming up behind me, that’s all.”

Rose smiled in understanding.

Alya put a hand on her arm. “Is it ok if I tell them?” she asked quietly. Marinette looked down, but nodded.

“Marinette had some bullies at her last school. I don’t know any details but apparently it was pretty bad. So let’s all make sure she doesn’t have the same problems here, ok?”

Marinette looked up, biting her lip, afraid she’d see looks of derision and judgement on their faces, right before they all got up and abandoned her. But instead she saw sympathy and understanding. It was enough to make her tear up again.

In a flash, Alya had an arm wrapped around her and Rose had jumped up to come hug her from behind. Marinette sniffed back the sobs that threatened. “I don’t know what I did to deserve you all,” she said in a wobbly voice, “But I’m really glad I came to school here!”

\----

“So, are we going to tell her who Adrien actually is?” Juleka asked quietly as they walked to their afternoon classes. Alya shook her head, watching Marinette and Mylene ahead of them, Mylene talking about her pet environmental projects while Marinette nodded along, occasionally offering a suggestion.

“No, I think I want Adrien to see for himself that she really had no clue. And that’s not going to happen if we tell her ahead of time. I’ll encourage her to talk to him after school today and see if something happens then. Adrien isn’t unreasonable, he’s just stubborn. Once he sees she really doesn’t want to tear the clothes off him, he’ll come around.”

\---- 

Marinette’s afternoon classes went just as well as her morning ones. She loved her art classes already, sure she was going to learn a lot. One of them focused on textile design, and the other was a more conventional art class that focused on all aspects of art, from painting to sculpture. There was even going to be an introduction to computer graphics, which Marinette thought would be particularly helpful. Her morning art class focused on drawing. And having her last class be history with Alya was really nice. It was almost like sitting together with Tikki again, the two of them against the rest of the school. Of course, here there was no reason to guard against everyone else, which made it twice as nice.

“Hey listen, about Adrien,” Alya said, as they were packing their things after class. “I know he was really rude to you this morning, but he’s not like that most of the time. He just got the wrong idea about you. And,” she placed a supportive hand on Marinette’s arm as she noticed how pale she’d gone, “I know it’s really hard for you to confront people, but I don’t want you two to be on bad terms. I promise he won’t growl at you again, ok? And I’ll be right there with you. Just talk to him, let him know you didn’t know about the seat and that Chloe told you to sit there. He’ll believe you- he knows what Chloe’s like.”

Marinette closed her eyes and breathed. Alya was probably right, after all she knows Adrien. She knows about the bullying and she wouldn’t do something that could get Marinette hurt… would she? But she had to admit the idea of talking to the rude boy again and giving him a chance to… to what? Verbally attack her again? Dismiss her as insignificant, like he had at lunch? It felt like a lot to deal with. 

_ But _ , she told herself firmly,  _ Mr. Fu stresses the importance of believing in yourself and in the general goodness of others. If you want him to give you a second chance, don’t you think you should give him a second chance, too? Besides, Alya is friends with him, and as understanding as she’s been about the bullying, do you really think she would be friends with a bully? Maybe he was just in a bad mood this morning and took it out on you. You’ve had bad days, too. Alya’s right- if you don’t take this chance it might not come again, and then things will be awkward between you all.  _

Nervously, Marinette nodded. “Ok. I’ll try to talk to him,” she said. She took a deep breath. She could do this.

By this time Marinette had a handle on the layout of the school and found her way back to her locker by herself without any problems. Alya had said she’d wait for her at the front doors, so Marinette quickly shoved her books into the locker, grabbed her umbrella, and made sure the locker was secure (three times) before rushing off to join her new friend.

They waited under the small portico just outside the school doors since it was raining as predicted, and Marinette used the time to try and wrestle her umbrella open. It was an old umbrella, but her Nonna had gifted it to her a few years ago on one of her rare visits and she couldn’t bring herself to part with it, even though an encounter with her previous school mates had left the shaft bent, which made it hard to open.

Marinette was quietly trying to force the shaft up when the doors opened again and Adrien and Nino came out. Unfortunately, at that moment Marinette lost her grip and the umbrella, half opened, slipped from her grasp and hit Adrien in the chest.

“Oh no! I’m so sorry!” Marinette plastered both hands over her mouth even as Adrien rubbed his chest with one hand while not  _ quite _ glaring at her. The umbrella clattered to the ground, forgotten. A spate of coughing issued from both Alya and Nino, and Alya hurried to put a hand out to stop Adrien from simply stalking off.

“Oh come on, it was an accident!” Alya said. “Just like this morning was nothing more than a malicious misunderstanding. Just talk to each other already!”

\----

Adrien’s irritated expression faded a little as he studied the girl currently quailing beside him. He had to admit that her most recent gaff with the umbrella probably was an accident, and she hadn’t acted like a regular fangirl at all that day. And if Alya and Nino were that determined to get her on his good side, the least he could do was to give her a chance.

“So?” he asked, and covered a wince at his less-than-friendly tone. He tried to smooth out his expression.

“I’mreallysorry,” the girl sputtered. Then she took a breath and visibly composed herself. Adrien turned toward her, a little intrigued that it apparently took that much courage just to talk to him. Usually girls had no problem talking to him any time of day or night. 

“I mean,” she said, slower. “I’m sorry I sat in your seat. I didn’t know, I’m new here, and…” she looked down, “And this girl named Chloe said new students always sit in the front row, so…” She bit her lip for a moment. “I mean, it’s just a chair, right? I don’t really get why it’s such a big deal, but I really like Alya and I’d like to be friends with her and maybewecouldbefriendstoo?” she finished in a rush, closing her eyes and cringing slightly away.

“This is true? Chloe told you to sit there?” Adrien pressed. He was weirded out by her evident fear of him and not quite sure what to do about it. No one had been actively afraid of him before and he didn’t like it.

Wordlessly she nodded.

Nino nudged him. “It definitely sounds like something Chloe would do,” he offered. Adrien nodded at that. 

“If that’s true, I’m going to have to have another talk with her,” he said grimly.

“No, no, please don’t!” the girl said, waving spastic hands. “I don’t want any trouble!”

Adrien’s mouth fell open a little before he frowned again.

“Listen, Chloe and I grew up together and while we’re not friends anymore, we did agree not to interfere with each other,” he said, getting a little heated. “If she’s trying to get new kids on my bad side from the very beginning, that’s a problem, and it’s not one I’m going to put up with.” He noted how she cringed even more at his raised tone and consciously lowered his voice. “Look,” he said, more gently, “Whatever happens between Chloe and me, it’s not going to come back to bite you, ok? And don’t worry… I believe you. Even if you do want to be a designer,” he added, somewhat grudgingly.

The girl blinked at him, finally relaxing in her confusion. “What does me being a designer have to do with anything?” she asked.

Adrien leaned a little closer to study her face. “You really don’t know?” he asked.

She leaned away. “N-no?”

A smile started on Adrien’s face as he pulled back. 

“Look, why don’t we start over?” he said. “Hi, I’m Adrien Agreste, and I’m going for a science degree.” He stuck his hand out which the girl took by reflex and he shook it solemnly, even as he smirked at the look of utter shock on her face.

She really hadn’t known!

“Ma-Ma-Marinette Dupain-Cheng,” she managed to gasp out after a moment. “Art degree.”

Adrien’s smile grew wider as the spell broke and she pulled her hand away as if it’d been burned, covering her suddenly blazing cheeks. “Ohmygod,” she agonized. “I can’t believe I offended Adrien Agreste!”

He chuckled, filing away how cute she looked when she was flustered. “Hey, it’s not that big of a deal. Like you said, it’s just a chair. And… I admit I overreacted. I really shouldn’t have been that rude to you, and I’m sorry. But… you seriously didn’t recognize me? And you want to be a designer?” His tone indicated just a hint of skepticism. Alya and Nino had drawn together by this time and were watching the proceedings with interest.

“You don’t  _ look _ like him!” Marinette squeaked, peeking at him through her fingers. 

Adrien laughed outright at that. Which seemed to be a good reaction because it made Marinette pull her hands down and frown at him. “You  _ don’t _ !” she insisted. “You-” she waved her hand up and down in front of him, “- and THAT-” she waved her hand toward the nearest Gabriel billboard which featured a story-tall image of Adrien’s perfectly clothed and arranged body, “- look nothing alike!” 

Adrien only laughed harder, bending over and slapping his leg. Marinette folded her arms and stamped her foot, and it was  _ so cute... _

“I- I’m not-” Adrien gasped out between laughs, “I’m not laughing at you, I swear!” he finished, recovering from the fit and wiping his eyes. “It’s just so perfect- this is exactly what I’m aiming for, you know,” he said with a bright and gentle smile. “I dress like this at school to make it harder for people to recognize me,” he explained, when Marinette’s frown didn’t waver. “The fact that you want to be a designer, and probably know my father’s work, just makes it that much sweeter that you didn’t recognize me until I told you my last name.” 

Marinette’s expression softened. “Really? You have to go that far just to avoid fans?”

“Well, I also  _ like _ dressing like this, but… yeah,” Adrien said.

A silver sedan pulled up to the curb just then, drawing everyone’s attention. Adrien bent to pick up Marinette’s forgotten umbrella. He tried to finish opening it for her, and was surprised when he realized the outer shaft was bent so badly the inner shaft could barely move.

“Don’t you have a better umbrella than this?” he muttered, finally forcing it past the sticking point until it clicked. He held it out to her, and she smiled sheepishly. 

“It was a gift,” she said, her fingers brushing his as she took it from him. Adrien blinked at the shock that ran up his arm at the contact. Marinette didn’t seem to notice. Adrien shook it off after a moment, deciding it was probably stray static electricity in the air from the storm. As if to confirm this, thunder rumbled in the distance.

“Well, I’m glad we got past all that awkwardness,” Nino said, stepping forward. “Hey, I’m Nino,” he said, waving at Marinette. “We’ll get to know each other tomorrow, ok?”

Marinette smiled and nodded, watching as the two boys hurried down the steps to the waiting car.

“See? I told you it wouldn’t be that bad,” Alya said, stepping up beside her.

Marinette groaned. “I can’t believe you didn’t tell me,” she complained. “All day, and you let me believe he was just another guy!”

Alya laughed. “I told you he’s a huge dork, though. Believe me, he’s just like any other guy, he just has a more glamorous job.”

“Yeah, I guess you’re right,” Marinette said, looking back to the billboard, and thinking of the differences between the boy portrayed there and the boy who consciously chose to reject that image.

Alya studied her face closely for a moment. “You’re not going to get a crush on him now, are you?” Her tone was discouraging.

But Marinette shook her head. “No. I meant what I said about not wanting special favors or treatment, and that’s what I’d be accused of if I started dating anyone connected to the big fashion houses. Besides,” she said, smiling shyly. “I didn’t want to say so before, but… there’s someone else I’m interested in.”

“Oh? Do tell,” Alya encouraged, as they shared Marinette’s umbrella on the way to the Metro entrance. 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> And that's the end of the Origins for this AU.
> 
> Hopefully Adrien will come across as less of a jerk in the rest of the story. I have big things planned, but there will be a bit of a break because I will have company over Christmas and I won't have time to write. I might be able to squeeze in another chapter before they arrive, but... it's doubtful.
> 
> Anyway, Merry Christmas and Happy Holidays!


	5. Chapter 5

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Tikki makes an appearance and Adrien starts figuring out how awesome Marinette is. Marinette makes strides toward trusting people again.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> It's a bit rougher than I like, but I've been wanting to write and post the next chapter for days so... I'll just leave this here.

Marinette was disappointed when Alya’s train ran in a different direction from hers, but she comforted herself with the thought that they’d see each other again the next day. But as she rode the train back toward her house, she found her thoughts settling on Tikki and how she’d fared that day.

Marinette had tried so hard to get Tikki to transfer with her, especially since Tikki was Lila Rossi’s second-favorite target. Tikki’s actual name was Tiana, and much like Marinette, she’d always known what she wanted to do for a living- be a world-famous chef. Unfortunately, after that one Disney movie came out, Lila and her cronies started calling Tiana La Grenouille Princesse and asking if frog-legs were going to be a specialty of hers on a near daily basis. Not a day would go by without someone anonymously emailing her recipes or memes involving frogs and toads. It got so bad that Tiana finally, though reluctantly, started going by Tikki instead, a name bestowed on her by her baby sister when she’d been too young to pronounce Tiana’s name accurately. 

She’d been Tikki ever since, and Marinette wasn’t sure she would ever go back to her real name. She still wanted to be a chef, after all, and Marinette suspected her real name would always have uncomfortable connotations with her chosen profession. She’d taken baking lessons from her parents the past summer, and Marinette had not only thoroughly enjoyed having her around so much, but also used the opportunity to try and convince her to transfer schools right along with her. The last thing she’d wanted to do was to leave Tikki behind to face Lila alone.

But Tikki was sceptical that any school would be better than the one they attended. “Better the devil you know,” she kept saying, and finally Marinette had stopped pushing. But now… now that Marinette could tell her how different the new school was, how nice the kids were there, and how the administration actually took bullying seriously… maybe now she’d come around. 

Marinette pulled up the student handbook on her phone and found and highlighted the passages about bullying, how to prove bullying behavior, and the penalties for bullying. She took some screenshots and emailed them to Tikki along with a heartfelt “Missing you,” just as her train pulled into the station. 

Marinette hurried up the steps- luckily the exit wasn’t far from the bakery, and she managed to dash across the street without getting too wet, since she’d wrestled her umbrella back down when she got on the train. She paused just inside the bakery door to take stock. Rainy days were unpredictable- sometimes the rain caused everyone to stay home, sometimes it drove everyone out for snacks. Today seemed to be slower. There were two customers waiting in line, and a few sitting at the small tables along the side with cups of coffee or hot chocolate.

“There you are, darling! Come on through and go get changed into dry clothes. I want to hear all about your day!” Sabine called from the register, and Marinette hurried past the customers into the staff area. She placed a quick kiss on her maman’s cheek before hurrying upstairs to change her clothes. Not only had they gotten damp, but Marinette had decided last year that her school clothes were going to be for school only and that she would change every day when she got home. That way her handmade pieces wouldn’t get as much wear on them and they’d last longer.

Once she was in a comfortable pair of sweatpants and long-sleeved shirt, Marinette scampered back down the stairs to grab herself a hot chocolate. By that time the customers had cleared out, so her parents were free to listen to her day while they finished up a few more bakes for the day.

“Well?” Sabine asked eagerly. It hadn’t escaped her notice that her daughter had seemed to be in a very good mood when she came in, which could only be a good sign.

“Maman, Papa… it was wonderful. Not perfect, there were a few snags, but so different from any other first day of school I’ve had in years. There’s this group of girls who I think have pretty much adopted me? It’s… it’s so nice to be able just to walk around the halls without worrying about being shoved or tripped or having something stolen. Or hearing whispers all the time. It’s just… this was the best decision we’ve ever made.”

“Oh honey, I’m so, so glad,” Sabine gushed, squeezing her hand. Tom just wrapped both of them in a crushing hug and then went back to his dough.

“I was wondering… do you think Tikki will agree to transfer now? I mean, now I can tell her how different it is, right? Now I have actual experience to share with her.” Marinette sighed. “I hate to think of her stuck with Lila, and all by herself this year. If it weren’t for how bad it got last year… but you and papa were right. I needed to do this for my own sanity. I just wish Tikki had listened to reason.”

“Tikki’s choice was her decision, not yours, dear. But hopefully she’ll change her mind now that you can tell her some things about the new school. And it’s never too late for her to transfer, so don’t give up hope just yet, alright?”

Marinette nodded and finished her hot chocolate. “I emailed her the sections in the student handbook that deal with bullying. Maybe that will help convince her. But I’m also planning to call her later after I finish what little homework I have. It’s only some reading for my classes tomorrow, so it shouldn’t take long.” Marinette got up to put her cup in the small sink behind the counter for bakery dishes. She ran her finger along the edge, and bit her lip before going on. “Do… do you think I could… invite her over for supper tonight?,” she asked. It was the first day of school, after all, but Marinette really missed having Tikki constantly by her side. 

“What was that, honey?” Sabine called from the register while she bent to get another customer’s order and box it up.

“Could I invite Tikki over for supper?”

“Of course! Only if it’s alright with her parents, though. It is a school night, after all. Are you going upstairs now?”

“Yes. I want to get a head start on reading for my classes.”

“Alright. We’ll see you in about two hours for supper. And let me know about whether Tikki is coming or not!”

“I will! And I’ll have the table ready,” Marinette promised. It was her job to set the table for supper every night the bakery was open, as well as making sure the pre-prepared food was warmed and anything extra, like a salad or chips and dip, was ready on time. It was a small enough task and Marinette usually performed it without complaint. The only times she really begrudged it was when she was neck deep in either designing or executing a design, and even then she acknowledged that it really didn’t take very much time at all and made her parents lives that much easier. Plus it was beneficial for her to learn how to step away from her designing now, rather than having to learn that difficult piece of self-control later on when she might suffer for her lack of commitment to self-care.

Today she was thankful to see a crockpot of bean and beef soup simmering away, since that meant Tom would make a special batch of cornbread- something he’d tried on a trip to the States once that he ever after raved about, and foisted onto unsuspecting people at the slightest provocation- before coming up to the apartment, and all Marinette would have to do would be set out soup bowls and spoons.

She got out her school books and spent a productive hour reading the assigned sections, and even reading ahead a little when she found something that piqued her interest. When she was finished, she checked her phone, a little surprised that Tikki hadn’t replied yet. Well, the afternoon was still young. Maybe Tikki had more homework than she did, or maybe there was something going on in her family? Either way, it was getting too late to invite her for supper tonight. 

Marinette decided to wait and call her after supper, and texted Sabine that Tikki wouldn’t be coming. Surely after supper would be late enough Tikki would be able to talk, but not late enough to interfere with homework or sleep. Marinette knew that attending different schools put a certain amount of distance between them, but the last thing she wanted was to lose Tikki as a friend entirely. She was determined to put in the effort.

\----

Tikki sighed as the final bell finally, finally rang, dismissing the students for the day. The first day of a new school year, and already Tikki was discovering how much worse it could be when there was no Marinette to try and keep cheerful for, to help come up with crazy, unworkable schemes for dealing with Lila, or to cheer her up when she needed it. Her chin throbbed in time with her heartbeat, and Tikki was ready to go home and forget about the day as quickly as possible.

Lila had been her usual self right from the very beginning, that false-sweetness covering over a bounty of malice. She’d jumped right on the chance to inform the home-room teacher that Marinette was late- again- a statement which had Tikki actually smirking a little. Apparently no one had informed the queen bee that one of her workers had flown the nest. Not that her smile had lingered very long. Lila lost no time upon being informed that Marinette Dupain-Cheng was no longer a student at the lycee before coming up to Tikki to ‘commiserate’ with her on ‘her only friend’s abandonment.’

Of course, Marinette leaving was nothing of the sort and Tikki knew it. She also knew Marinette had tried long and hard to get her to switch schools right along with her. But Tikki wasn’t as optimistic as Marinette, and as awful as Lila could be, Tikki had always been able to ignore her for the most part. After all, that’s what she and Marinette had done as often as possible. But today… today ignoring her hadn’t been an option. Lila stuck close to Tikki all day long, possibly because she really was trying to comfort her for Marinette’s apparent defection, but in actuality to try and find out where Marinette had gone, for what reasons, and whether or not there was any chance Lila could get her back for escaping her reach. Her careful probing questions revealed exactly what she was up to, and Tikki kept her answers vague. 

Lila’s eyes flashed with fury whenever Marinette was mentioned, and there was much talk of Marinette’s supposed ‘clumsiness,’ her inability to get anything done on time or even show up at the correct times, how she’d act nice to your face and talk about you behind your back, and how much better off they all were now that Marinette was finally gone. All of these supposed faults could be tied directly back to Lila’s many interferences, but no one mentioned that, of course.

Tikki ignored most of it, but she found it more difficult to shut out than it had been last year. It seemed handling the burden of Lila’s lies alone was going to be harder than she’d anticipated. Still, it wasn’t anything she couldn’t handle, of that she was certain. To be honest, she’d always seen Marinette as weaker when it came to handling unpleasant people. Marinette’s spine seemed to shrivel up and/or evaporate the minute Lila came into view unless Tikki was there to bolster her. Tikki was made of sterner stuff, though. She could handle whatever Lila dished out, and probably walk away without so much as a scratch.

It therefore surprised her when Lila casually tripped her in the hallway outside their last class for the day, the foot stuck in front of her own helped along by a hand between her shoulder blades. Usually Marinette would have been the one to take the fall, Tikki either helping her up without comment, or managing to save her before she hit the actual floor. But there wasn’t anyone there to help Tikki in Marinette’s place, so she found herself staring up at the faux-worried face of the school bully, her eyes hiding a gleam of amused satisfaction before loudly lamenting that Marinette’s curse seemed to have transferred to Tikki that year.

And that, of course, was all the warning Tikki knew she would get. She got the message, too, loud and clear. Lila was angry that her favorite punching bag had flown the coop, so she’d turned her eye on Tikki as the substitute, the stand-in. Not even the first choice for victim, that was Tikki. Not that she’d ever want to be first choice in that circumstance, but somehow it stung to know that she had never been the favored target before and now she was, all because Marinette wasn’t there.

On the train-ride home Tikki nursed a bruised chin and ignored the chime that indicated Marinette had sent her a message. The last thing she wanted was to hear about how wonderful the new school was. Because it was bound to be. With the luck she’d had that day, no doubt Marinette had found herself in positively hallowed surroundings. And Tikki didn’t feel like facing the fact that she could have found herself in those same surroundings if she’d had just a little more courage.

\----

Tikki finally replied to Marinette’s message at lunch the next day. But it was a simple acknowledgement of the information and a polite thank you for sending it. No indication of how her day had gone, or whether she was considering switching schools as well. Marinette slumped in her seat between Rose and Mylene and thought about how to reply to that. She bit her lip and finally sent a text inviting her to supper that night. She’d already asked her parents, and they had agreed since Tikki hadn’t been able to come the night before. 

Then she turned her attention back to the table conversation, nervously eating her meal on top of the sketchbooks she’d brought that day. Logically, she knew nothing would happen to her sketchbooks, but she kept them with her anyway. Even thinking about leaving them in her locker, or, heaven forbid, one of the art rooms with not even the security of a cheap lock, made her dizzy. The girls, of course, were very curious about them, asking to see some of her designs. 

Marinette had had to force herself to let them see one or two pages, but she’d kept a firm hold of them the whole time, knuckles white with anxiety. She’d been rewarded when the girls had cooed over them and hadn’t even reached out to touch the pages. Alya in particular was taken with a design for an a-line summer dress, and Marinette had already decided to make it for her for a special occasion. Assuming they remained friends, of course. As nice as it was to have a ready-made group of girl-friends, Marinette knew just how quickly that could change if the wrong people whispered in the right ears.

Nathanael’s curiosity had been a little easier to bear. After all, he was another artist, and knew the importance and sanctity of a sketchbook. Frankly, Marinette had been surprised he was willing to show her his own work the first day of school, but she wasn’t about to reward his trust with anything less herself. But again, she found herself clutching the book white-knuckled even as she flipped pages for him to see what she’d been working on recently. He complimented her and asked intelligent questions about how to make clothing look realistically wrinkled. Marinette relaxed as his attention moved from her sketchbook to his own. He pulled it out and quickly roughed out a new outfit he was considering for one of his characters, and Marinette was able to show him a new technique for suggesting limbs under loose clothing. He smiled at her and thanked her. Marinette breathed easier, and easier still when the teacher approved what she’d done before and assigned her three new projects on the spot based on her level of drawing skill. 

\----

Adrien was pleasantly surprised when Marinette only smiled and nodded to him in passing on the second day of school, confining her conversational efforts to Alya and the rest of the girls. Nino came in for a few questions, but Marinette largely ignored Adrien himself. That was fine with him. He’d agreed to be friends with her, but honestly, he’d been dreading the inevitable crush and awkwardness. But it seemed Marinette was either too interested in someone else to be swayed from her affections, or she really didn’t want to be anything other than his friend.

Adrien found himself studying her, since she seemed so determined not to even look in his direction unless he was talking. She dressed well, in outfits that suited both her figure and her personality- what little he knew of it. And he had the impression that many of her things were handmade, which was both impressive and somewhat unexpected. All the designers he’d ever met had worn their own pieces, but they had all been older- actual adults- and he was surprised to see that Marinette was skilled enough at her age to make clothing that looked like it could have been bought in a store. 

She seemed shy, but Adrien, and everyone else, laughed in surprise as much as amusement when she gave Alya a saucy answer to a bit of good-humored teasing. It seemed there was more to Marinette than the shy girl he’d met yesterday. He would have to keep his eye on her, but for now… for now it was nice to know one girl who wasn’t already attached, who had no designs on him, whether personal or professional. He’d noticed she carried a few sketchbooks around, but she was strangely reluctant to let anyone see what was in them. However, when Adrien got a quick peek at lunch, he was again impressed with her skill level. His father could probably have improved on her designs, but not by much as far as Adrien could tell. 

Over the next weeks, Marinette relaxed more and more into her new surroundings, and Adrien admitted to being increasingly intrigued by her. She was gaining confidence in her interactions with their friend group, moving from the occasional clap-back answer to dishing out some teasing of her own. Adrien, however, almost never came in for this unless he initiated it himself. And then, Marinette drew back before he could get far with the banter. It was discouraging, and if it had been anyone else Adrien would probably have decided to leave her alone. But there was something about Marinette… he wanted to be closer to her, to be counted as a good friend. But Marinette seemed determined to keep him at arms length, and he wondered if it was because of the way they’d first met. Surely she couldn’t still be mad at him for that, could she? They’d talked it out. Or at least, he thought they had. And she was nothing if not friendly to him, but there was a coolness to it that wasn’t there with literally anyone else. Even Ivan got a warmer smile from her than he did. 

Adrien tried to ignore it, but when Marinette suddenly clammed up one afternoon while they were waiting for Nino and Alya to return from their lockers, he decided to ask her about it.

“Why do you do that?” He asked, trying not to sound accusing.

“Do what?” Marinette asked, looking toward the street.

“We can be talking like normal, and then all of a sudden you just… I don’t know how to describe it, really. It’s like you stop being yourself.”

Marinette blinked at him and opened her mouth to reply. Then she shut it firmly. “It’s… not personal, Adrien.”

“Well it sure feels personal. I’m the only one you do that with. I mean, aren’t we friends, at least? I thought we were.”

Marinette sighed. “It’s like you said. I want to be a designer. You are the son of a famous designer, someone I look up to, in fact. I can’t… I can’t be as close to you.”

Unconsciously Adrien moved closer. “Why not?”

“Because of what people would say,” Marinette said, finally looking straight at him.

Adrien frowned. “I don’t understand.”

“Adrien, you thought I was a fangirl the first time you saw me, and all because I was sitting in the seat that everyone knows you always claim. I had no idea, but you made an assumption, based on your previous experience. If I’m too friendly with you… everyone is going to assume that any progress I make toward my dreams is all due to knowing you. They won’t think, they’ll know that I’m taking advantage of my friendship with you to further my own career. I… I can’t have people thinking that. I just can’t. I won’t. So,” she paused to take a deep breath. “I’m sorry, I really am, but… we just can’t be as close friends as I am with Alya or Rose or even Ivan.”

Adrien stepped back. “I see.”

“I really am sorry,” Marinette said, in a softer voice. “If I didn’t want to be a designer so badly I can taste it… but I do. And I can’t let people’s prejudices and assumptions ruin what little chance I have. I don’t have the connections to be able to get past something like that.”

Adrien’s eyebrows rose at that. “What little chance?” he repeated. “Marinette, I’ve seen your designs. They’re good. Really good.”

Marinette raised a sceptical eyebrow at him. “Really.”

“Yes, really. Seriously, you’re as good as some of Dad’s interns from what I’ve seen, and you’re a lot younger than they are,” he assured her, sticking both hands in his pockets. “And has it ever occurred to you that I could be a connection that would help you get past people’s assumptions?”

“Of course it has!” Marinette rather surprisingly replied. “But I don’t want to use you that way! That would make me as bad as all the rest. I couldn’t take advantage of you like that. I won’t. You deserve better.”

A smile tugged at the corner of Adrien’s mouth. “You’re really something,” he mused. “You push me away because you’re convinced we can’t be more than passing friends, and all because you’re worried about how people are going to judge your designs sometime in the future? What did I ever do to deserve a friend like you?”

Marinette frowned at him.

“I meant that as a compliment!” Adrien said quickly. “Seriously. You make it sound like you’re only thinking of yourself and your own ambition, but actually you’re trying to protect me at the same time. It’s… it’s certainly a new thing for me,” he said ruefully, and rubbed the back of his neck. “At least within fashion circles. Obviously Nino, nor Alya, nor any of the rest have ambitions that direction, so I’ve never had to think about things like this with them. Well, Juleka wants to be a model despite what I tell her about it, but that’s technically a different area, and… well, I can see where you’re coming from, actually. Doesn’t mean I like it, because from what I can tell you’re a really awesome friend to have. But I think I’ll take what I can get with you,” he finished with a crooked smile. “Clearly I’d have to be an idiot not to.”

Marinette eyed him consideringly for a moment before nodding. “Alright. I’m glad you asked, though. Now you’ll know it’s not personal when I pull back from something or won’t come over to your house like Nino or Alya.”

“Oh, I think you’d be fine coming over as long as it’s with a larger group of my friends, don’t you? You’d just be one among many. No one would even notice you. And,” he leaned in and lowered his voice conspiratorially, and Marinette couldn’t help but grin and lean in, too, “my dad isn’t even home most of the time, so no one can accuse you of only coming over to pick his brain or try to get on his good side.”

“Good to know,” Marinette said, nodding sagely and then ruining the effect with a wink. “But I’m still going to pull back at times.”

“If you really feel it’s necessary,” Adrien said with an answering wink. “Personally, I don’t think it is, but my career isn’t on the line here. Like I said, I’ll take what I can get with you.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I want to put in a quick note about Tikki. Hopefully it's evident from what I've already written (and what I will write in future) but... Tikki is not in a good situation. She's internalized a lot more of the abuse and bullying than she realizes and she's like a lot of people who are stuck in bad situations- she refuses to leave because she doesn't think she deserves to. This will change, but it's going to get worse before it gets better.


	6. Chapter 6

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Chat Noir and Plagg show up. Marinette has a panic attack.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Here is this monster of a chapter. I hope you enjoy angst, because there is plenty of it.

“So how is the new school working out, Ladybug?” Chat Noir asked over voice chat as they tag-teamed a new player in the arena. According to the stats, Dusuu was a fairly new player on their server. He or she was cocky enough to challenge the top two players on the board, claiming that he or she would soon cut them down to size. Dusuu had no idea what kind of hell would be unleashed on them, but Marinette was more than happy to educate them. Chat Noir had also jumped on the chance to team with her. Ladybug didn’t team up very often, preferring to beat her opponents into dust solo and keep all the loot for herself. When she did team up, though, she chose Chat Noir by preference.

Marinette saw an opportunity and took a moment to use a particularly devastating combo on the unsuspecting player. Chat Noir, as usual, followed her lead with a beautifully executed combo of his own. Player Dusuu went down and went down hard. The game assigned loot and points according to hits taken and given, and in the end Chat Noir actually got more than she did for once. 

“Congrats!” Marinette said, “That should raise your ranking by as much as half a percent! Too bad you’d need about a thousand more of those before you even come close to challenging my spot.”

“Oh, ha ha,” Chat Noir retorted. “As if I’d really want to knock you off your pedestal. You kind of built the thing on your own, so I figure you deserve to sit on it as long as you please. I’m just chilling down here at the base, defending it and establishing a shrine to your greatness.”

“Flattery will get you nothing,” Marinette warned, with a fond smile. “Seriously, if you weren’t such a gentleman you’d probably be a lot closer in ranking to me. But to answer your question, the new school is great! Seriously. I’m making more friends than I’ve had in years, and it’s just… the whole environment is so calm. I’m not stressed out all the time like I was before- I’m not constantly looking over my shoulder for the next attack, you know?”

“Yeah,” Chat’s voice sobered. “I really wish you’d tell me who you are and where you went to school, because I’m pretty sure I could get that place shut down.”

Marinette could laugh at that now, however unlikely it seemed. A few months ago, that would have filled her with fear of some kind of retribution, but now that she wasn’t subject to Lila’s whims, she could appreciate the sentiment behind the offer.

“Don’t worry about it,” she said. “I’m not there anymore.”  _ I’m not a victim anymore _ , she thought but didn’t say.

“Doesn’t mean I don’t still want to know you,” Chat Noir insisted. “Plus, you probably weren’t the only one stuck in Bully High. Don’t get me wrong, I’m glad you left, but… maybe some other kid is still… oh, hold up. Someone’s challenging me. Gotta go, but I’ll message you later!”

And with that Chat Noir logged out of the chat and Marinette was left staring at the computer screen, feeling conflicted. On one hand, she did want to meet Chat Noir. He was by far the best player on the server after herself, and he’d never been anything but unfailingly polite and generous to her, even after she was pretty rude to him when she’d first started playing Ultimate Mech Strike Online. On the other… she’d managed to develop quite the crush on him, and what if he wasn’t as appealing in person as he was online? What if they found they couldn’t talk to each other without a microphone and the distraction of pulverizing mechs? And then there was the nastiness she’d unleashed on him at the very beginning. What if he still held that against her somehow? It was, she admitted, unlikely, but… she couldn’t get the thought out of her head.

She’d had a lot of frustrations to work out in the early days, but she’d long since apologized and they’d become friends of sorts. He supported her as much as he could during the years Lila had plagued her life, and encouraged her to take out her frustrations on the mechs of other players, and even his own at times. He’d never given her an easy fight, either. He always played to win, claiming that made her victory all the sweeter. And he was right about that.

He was also right about the other kids stuck still attending her old lycee. Tikki in particular. Maybe she should tell him, but… not immediately. It would mean a lot of drama and stress that she didn’t want to deal with until she was feeling more secure in her new school and new friendships.

But soon. She’d tell him her real name… maybe in a month or two.

\----

Tikki was avoiding Marinette. There was no other word for it, and she was secretly ashamed of it, but she couldn’t help herself. She’d gone over for dinner the second day of school and it was non-stop babble about how amazing and wonderful the new school was from the moment she walked in the door until she left a few hours later. There were a few pauses for Sabine and Tom and Marinette herself to ask about how school was going, or if she had tried any new recipes lately, but the concern on their faces was a dead give-away that they were trying once more to convince her to transfer. Tikki kept her answers short and vague, inevitably stalling the conversation for a bit whenever she spoke. It was the most awkward she’d ever felt among the Dupain-Chengs and she knew it was her own fault, but she found she couldn’t deal with their evident good intentions. Not now.

So she started avoiding Marinette’s calls, answering her texts late or not at all, and generally trying to distance herself from her one-time best friend. It hurt. She could admit that she was probably hurting Marinette as much as she was hurting herself, but… she just couldn’t stand to hear about how good Marinette had it now when she was still stuck in lycee hell with the queen of manipulators. 

The first day of the second week of school saw Tikki speed walking to class, not even trying to predict when the first trip of the day would happen, just keeping herself constantly braced for it. She kept her eyes on the ground so she wouldn’t see the groups of students clumped together, eyeing her as she passed, and breaking out in whispers as soon as she did. That was how she ran into the new kid.

She crashed into him and it was only his own quick reflexes and the fact that she was already braced that prevented both of them falling to the ground. Instead, she found her arms gripped tightly, her own hands pushing back against a broad chest, and both of them staring into each others eyes with alarm.

Tikki blushed and jerked back, breaking their contact. “I’m sorry,” she said, quickly. “I wasn’t watching where I was going.”

“Oh dear,” a syrupy sweet voice piped up from behind her. “Are you alright? It must be so jarring to be crashed into like that. You should be more careful, Tikki! You know, I think there must be something in the air here… you used to be more graceful. But maybe that was just compared to Marinette. After all, Marinette was so clumsy she’d make anyone appear graceful, poor thing! But don’t worry, I’m sure you’ll outgrow this awkward phase eventually.” 

A chorus of nasty titters rang out behind Tikki, but mercifully they faded into the distance. Tikki gritted her teeth so hard they squeaked, and the new kid blinked, evidently hearing it. Tikki quickly relaxed her jaw, and forced a smile.

“Again, I’m sorry. You must be new here,” she said.

“Yes,” the guy said, and Tikki blinked at the rich bass that came out of his mouth. “My family moved here last week and we are just getting settled.” He spoke french well, but with a spanish flavor that Tikki immediately fell in love with. “My name is Eduardo Martinez, but please, call me Plagg. And you are?” 

“Tikki,” she managed with her suddenly dry mouth. “It’s Tiana Beaulieu, actually, but I go by Tikki.” She swallowed. “So… Plagg? That’s pretty unusual.”

He smiled a little, eyes warm. “It’s a little warning to people.”

“You have to warn people?” Tikki asked, suddenly unsure whether she should be trying to make friends with this person. No matter how sexy his voice was. Or how beautifully his honey-brown eyes caught the sunlight. Or how ripped he was under that thin t-shirt… Tikki cut her thoughts off there and tried to focus.

“Originally it means nothing more than ‘garment,’” Plagg explained. “But I like to think it’s a short form for ‘plague,’ because that’s what I will be to anyone who tries with me what was just done to you.”

Tikki shivered. “Yeah, I don’t think you want to try that with Lila,” she said. “She’s the most manipulative person I know and all the teachers and admins just love her.”

Plagg shrugged and Tikki tried very hard not to notice how the movement called attention to his very defined pectorals. She failed. She swallowed again and flicked her eyes back up to his, only to see amusement lurking in their depths. Somehow she found her arm linked in his as he fished a schedule out of his backpack.

“Can you show me where this room is, please?” he asked, casually pointing to his first class of the day. Tikki’s heart simultaneously lept and sank, leaving her feeling a little sick from the sudden swing… because he shared her homeroom… which meant he also shared a homeroom with Lila. And with his good looks and sexy voice, Lila was sure to target him for her own purposes. Very shortly he would probably join the ranks of the Lila Rossi fan-club, which meant he would become a plague to  _ her _ , just so he could impress Lila. 

Tikki sighed and said, “Sure. Come on.” She started to move forward again, but Plagg didn’t follow.

“Now what was that tone of voice?” he asked, frowning at her. “Do you not wish to be friends?”

Tikki snorted and shook her head. “It’s not that. It’s just that you probably won’t want to be friends with me, so I’m just accepting that now so I won’t be disappointed later.” Then she stopped and gaped at him. “Uh…” She wondered wildly how she was supposed to backtrack from that. “I... said that out loud, didn’t I?” she asked faintly with a nervous smile.

“You did,” Plagg said, still frowning. “But I don’t understand. You seem very nice, and… frankly you are quite attractive,” he said, his eyes sliding down her body a little before he blinked and looked her in the eye again. “I would not mind getting to know you better, and… pardon, but I thought... perhaps you felt the same?”

Tikki blushed. “Y-yeah, I do. Did. I did. But,” she bit her lip. “It’s just that Lila’s probably going to try and do whatever it is she does to get people to like her, to get  _ you _ to like her… and if that happens… well. You won’t want to be around me anymore. She doesn’t like me,” Tikki finished softly.

“This Lila… she is the same as the girl who was so spiteful a moment ago?”

“Yeah. Wait, you could tell that was spite?”

“It seemed fairly obvious, yes.”

“Huh.” Tikki stared at him. “You’re the first person besides myself and my friend who has ever seen through Lila like that. Everyone else can’t see past the sweet expression and syrupy platitudes.” She looked down at her toes, clad in sneakers, because what was the point in inviting someone to drop a heavy book or bag on sandaled feet. “To be honest, it even took us a while to see through her. And you did it in one encounter.”

Plagg raised an eyebrow, his expression grim, and Tikki suddenly had no problem believing the new kid could be a plague on someone if he wanted to be.

“Perhaps she was not minding herself the way she should on a first meeting, then,” he said, then suddenly grinned at her. “But rest assured, I will not abandon you for this Lila. Now, who is this Marinette that she talked of? A friend of yours? Or another rival?” 

Tikki let out a little breath, not quite sure what had just happened as she filled Plagg in on the drama of their particular lycee while walking him to class.

\----

Over the next month Marinette settled into the new school routine. At first it was really strange not to be on guard all the time. Exhilarating and wonderful, but strange. She missed Tikki more than ever, knowing that she would have been the only one who could possibly understand the strange conundrum of sort of missing the daily fear and anxiety even as she reveled in the lack of it. But Tikki had been pulling away from her, slowly at first, but more pronounced as the month progressed. By this time they barely texted and only spoke on the phone every few days. Marinette hadn’t been to Tikki’s house at all after that first week, and Tikki hadn’t mentioned wanting to come over to the bakery, either.

It hurt… it hurt a  _ lot _ that one of her best and- for a long time- only friends, was pulling away like this, but Marinette tried to tell herself that it was just an adjustment period and that they would get back to the solid friendship they’d had before. At least she had let drop the fact that there was a new student at the lycee who apparently saw through Lila the first time he met her, and had befriended Tikki. It was comforting to know that Tikki wasn’t alone anymore. Surely it wouldn’t be too much longer before she could meet this ‘Plagg,’ and introduce both of them to some of her new friends.

And in the meantime Marinette was having a blast learning about those new friends. She’d pulled out her trusty day-planner and went around asking for everyone’s birthdays and special occasions. She asked Ivan about Mylene, Mylene about Juleka, Juleka about Rose, Rose about Ivan, Alya about Adrien, Adrien about Nino, and Nino about Alya. She soon had their birthdays marked down along with ideas and suggestions for good presents. She even got Nathanael to tell her his birthdate without, she thought, making him too suspicious. She planned to surprise each of them with a gift on their birthdays and couldn’t wait for the first one just to see their faces.

Nathanael was turning out to be a nice breath of fresh air every time Marinette forced herself to step back from Adrien. They could talk about anything art-related, swapping techniques and style critiques and offering each other mutual support. Marinette had never had another artist as a friend before, and she found that he had as much tendency to get immersed in a project as she did. Fortunately, neither of them felt left out or neglected whenever that happened and they didn’t actually talk or interact much for a few days. They both understood the power of a creative frenzy and didn’t blame the other when it inevitably happened. Even Tikki had never fully understood the absolute focus that sometimes came along with creating, though she’d usually just turn her attention to a book or movie if Marinette descended to that level of concentration.

She was still very protective of her sketchbooks. Once bitten, twice shy, and Marinette had had too many ‘accidents’ happen to her precious sketchbooks. She carried them with her everywhere while at school, she’d even made herself a large portfolio to carry them in, never leaving them in her locker or one of the art rooms. She was seriously thinking of saving up some of her commision money specifically to buy a drawing tablet. It would be a learning curve, but at least if the tablet broke (or was destroyed), her work would still be saved to the cloud and she wouldn’t lose it.

But she was slowly learning to trust the people around her on a more than superficial level. It was hard to open up more than she already had, and she didn’t talk about the bullying she’d experienced at all after that first day. But Alya, bless her, remembered what she’d said about empty bathrooms and people sneaking up on her, and whenever they were together, she made sure to warn Marinette when someone was coming up behind, and went with her to the bathroom without making an issue of it.

Which is why it was a whole month before Marinette was faced with going to the bathroom at school alone. It was the last class of the day and Marinette felt that dreaded trickle which meant her period had come a day early. She had supplies, thank goodness, but if she didn’t take care of the issue immediately, there would be an embarrassing stain. But it was the middle of class, and Marinette knew the teacher wasn’t likely to let Alya go to the bathroom with her. Which meant she had to face it alone. 

_ But _ , she thought,  _ maybe it’s time for that. After all, nothing’s happened yet, and it’s not likely to, either. _

She wordlessly grabbed her little purse and went up to the teacher’s desk for the hall pass. She shot a quick look back at Alya as she headed for the door, only to see her frowning with concern, but she didn’t get up to follow. Marinette gave her a nervous smile and left. She walked down the silent hallways, trying to psych herself up.

_ It’s fine, _ she thought.  _ It’ll be empty. One minute, maybe two to insert the tampon and put a pad in. Then you just wash your hands and you’re done. Easy! Nothing to be afraid of. _

Her hands shook as she pushed the door open. For a moment she froze halfway through the door, but then she forced herself on when she felt the next little trickle. She bolted for the nearest stall, quickly closing it behind her and took care of business faster than she ever had before. Then she was out and washing her hands, hardly daring to believe that she’d actually done it. She’d gone to the bathroom by herself... and nothing terrible had happened.

The door suddenly slammed open and Marinette froze with her hands still under the water. A short girl with messy pink hair came in. Marinette stared at her, trying to throttle her sudden terror.

“What are you looking at?” the girl demanded, clearly in a bad mood. And that was all it took for the memories to come flooding back.

“N-no,” she gasped, backing away. “S-stop…” Her back hit the wall beside the sinks and she slid down it pulling her arms protectively over her head. She couldn’t breathe, couldn’t see anything but the faces, those awful jeering faces. Any moment now they would start in on her and she wouldn’t be able to stop them, and _she_ _couldn’t_ _breathe_ , there was no _air_ , and they were going to _hurt_ her _again_...

\----

Alix walked down the hall with Adrien, tired and worn out after the worst two days of her life. Jalil had gone off his meds again and now he was back in the hospital and she’d been up all night with her father, making sure he didn’t make too much trouble for the nurses. There’d been a history test this morning, and Alix had fallen asleep halfway through it, which was irritating because she was sure she could have answered any of those questions in her sleep. Unfortunately for her, the test wasn’t oral it was multiple choice, and the teacher either hadn’t noticed she’d fallen asleep, or hadn’t bothered to wake her until the bell rang. So she was facing a failing grade on the test- which was annoying in and of itself, since she knew the material backwards and forwards- and since there were only four tests in the semester, a failing grade on this one could hurt her grades significantly. 

Fortunately, she’d complained to Adrien about this before their shared class started, and he’d offered to sneak her into the room where the test sheets were kept so she could at least fill in all the bubbles on her scan-sheet. It probably wouldn’t be much better than leaving half of them blank, but she would have a pretty decent chance of getting some of the missing answers right.

They were coming back from that successfully completed errand when Alix felt a call of nature. She told Adrien to wait for her, and went into the nearest bathroom, relieving some of her pent-up feelings of frustration on the bathroom door. Surprisingly there was someone else in there, washing her hands. The slightly taller girl stared at her and though Alix felt a twinge of guilt for startling her, she wasn’t in the mood to deal with ill-timed curiosity.

Unfortunately, the girl started some kind of fit, backing away and starting to hyperventilate. Alix frowned at her. 

“Hey, breathe, it’s fine,” she said, then, thinking maybe the girl had asthma, she added. “Do you need an inhaler?” 

When the girl didn’t do anything but mouth some words and slide down the wall, Alix cursed to herself and left to get Adrien. Someone needed to sit with the girl but someone had to go for the nurse, too…

Fortunately, Adrien was still there, leaning against the wall.

“Adrien” Alix said, “I need you to go get the nurse. There’s a girl in the bathroom having some kind of fit.”

“What, seriously?” Adrien stood upright and started for the door. Alix followed, muttering about stupid models who couldn’t follow basic directions.

\----

Adrien cautiously opened the door a little. At first glance he couldn’t see anyone, but he did hear frantic gasping breaths coming from somewhere near the sinks. He went in, announcing himself with a, “hello, everyone decent?”

For a moment he didn’t recognize the black-haired girl cowering against the wall, since she had her arms over her head, but then he noticed the little purse at her side, a pink one with an appliqued flower that he knew had been handmade.

Alix came in behind him and punched him in the arm. “I said, go get the nurse! This is the  _ girls _ bathroom in case you didn’t notice!”

But all Adrien could do was stare at Marinette, his chest tightening at her obvious distress. “That’s- I know her, Alix. You go get the nurse, I’ll stay with her.”

Alix glared at him but then threw up her hands and left, apparently deciding that fetching the nurse was more important than arguing over who went to get her.

Adrien went to sit down beside Marinette, whose breaths were getting shorter and shorter. She was shaking, shivering as she tried to curl up into the tightest ball possible.

“Hey, Marinette,” he said as calmly and gently as he could. “It’s just me, your friend Adrien. It’s okay, you’re okay, but I need you to listen to me. Can you do that?”

Marinette didn’t reply. Perhaps she couldn’t.

“Can you breathe with me?” Adrien asked, keeping his voice low and gentle. “I don’t think you’re getting enough air. Come on, breathe in for four, ok? One… two… three… four… Now out for five. One… two… three…”

Adrien could tell Marinette was trying. Her whole body shook as she tried to regulate her breathing.

“That’s good, you’re doing good,” he said, encouraging her efforts. “Let’s try again, ok? In for one… two…” He kept up his counting, and gradually Marinette’s breaths became less ragged and strained. Adrien continued to talk to her, counting her through each breath in and out, throwing in little non-sequiturs to try and distract her from whatever it was that had caused this reaction.

Finally, Alix arrived with the nurse. By that time Marinette had relaxed enough to lower her arms, although she kept them crossed over her knees, and tears rolled silently from under her closed lids as she continued to work on her breathing. 

Adrien looked up at the nurse. “She was hyperventilating, but I think I managed to talk her through it,” he offered. “But I don’t know what’s really wrong. She hasn’t said anything.”

“That’s a good job done, young man. Now there’s only a few minutes of class left, but you should go on and let me handle the rest.” The nurse put her first aid kit on the counter and opened it, turning her attention away from Adrien and Alix as completely as if they’d already left.

Adrien reluctantly stood and then he stooped and lightly touched her shoulder. Marinette flinched away and a strangled sob escaped her, so Adrien pulled back. “I’m sorry. I hope you feel better,” he said. Then he stood and left. 

Alix was leaning up against the wall waiting for him, but Adrien ignored her for another moment so he could text Alya.

Adrien: Marinette needs you. Girl’s bathroom on the south hall. The nurse sent me away, and I don’t know what’s going on, but I’m guessing some kind of panic attack. 

He looked up as the Nurse led a still shaking Marinette out of the bathroom, a blanket now draped over her shoulders. She didn’t look up.

Adrien: The nurse just left with Marinette. I’ll meet you at the nurse’s office.

Alix punched his arm again, and Adrien frowned at her. “Would you quit doing that?”

“Maybe… if you tell me what’s going on.”

“I don’t know! What did you see when you went in? Was she already like that?”

Alix glowered. “No. She was washing her hands. I mean, I guess I probably startled her, ‘cause I slammed the door open, but all I did was ask her what she was looking at when she wouldn’t stop staring at me. Then she just sort of... collapsed.”

Adrien’s frown deepened. 

“So who is she anyway? I thought I knew all the girls you know.”

“You’ve been pretty busy lately. That’s Marinette. You remember the girl who sat in my seat the first day of school?”

“Oh yeah, the fangirl.”

“Turns out she’s not, though. It’s nice, actually,” Adrien said, a small smile tugging at his lips. “She’s the only girl I know who isn’t involved with someone else and isn’t interested in me- aside from you.”

Alix raised a sceptical eyebrow. “Uh-huh, whatever. So do you have any idea what brought this on? ‘Cause you know I hate to be the person who makes someone else break down… unless it’s because I won, or something.”

“That’s just it- I don’t.” Adrien stared after the retreating forms of his friend and the nurse. “I have no idea what would make her react like that. Maybe Alya does, though. I’m going to meet her outside the nurse’s office.”

Alix considered for a moment. “I think I’ll come, too. The nurse is right, there’s no point going back to class for,” she checked her smartwatch, “five minutes.”

Adrien just shrugged, jammed his hands in his pockets and started for the nurse’s office.

\----

Alya was out of breath when she joined them, sitting in the chairs out in the hall and waiting for Marinette to emerge.

“What happened?” were the first words out of her mouth. She looked really concerned.

Adrien shrugged. “We don’t really know. I was helping Alix with something, and then she had to go to the bathroom when we went back to class, and Marinette was in there, and then she just… had a panic attack I guess.”

Alix shrugged when Alya looked to her to confirm this. “Maybe I was in a little bit of a mood, but honestly all I did was ask her what she was looking at.”

Alya cursed under her breath. “Was there anyone else in there? Anyone in the stalls?”

“Nope. Completely deserted, except for her.”

Alya collapsed into a seat beside Alix. “I should have gone with her.”

“What, she can’t use the bathroom by herself?” Alix scoffed.   
  


Alya glared at her. “She’s got her reasons, ok?”

Adrien narrowed his eyes, but stayed quiet, hoping Alya would elaborate.

“So, what are they?” Alix pressed, never one to back down at a mere social cue.

Alya crossed her arms and looked away. “I don’t know if she’d like me telling anyone. It’s personal, ok? Let it go.”

Alix got up. “Whatever. Just… tell her I didn’t mean anything by it, ok?”

Alya nodded, and Alix left.

Adrien and Alya waited in silence for a few minutes.

“Do you think Marinette would mind me knowing?” Adrien asked quietly. “It was really disturbing to see her like that, and I... I just want to make sure it never happens again.”

Alya sighed. “I don’t know, Adrien. She didn’t even want to tell me, at first.”

“... it’s ok.”

They both looked up to see Marinette standing in the door of the nurse’s office, pale and unsmiling, but obviously much improved. She sighed and moved to sit between them, where Alix had been sitting a few moments ago. She rubbed her hands on her knees nervously.

“I… honestly, I’d rather not tell anyone, but… my therapist said that I need to tell people so they… know.”

Alya put a hand on her shoulder and Marinette leaned into the touch, close enough that Alya could wrap her in a side-hug. Adrien thought about reaching out to her, but drew back, remembering how she’d reacted to his touch before.

“But first, I want to thank you for what you did, back there in the bathroom, I mean,” Marinette said, turning her head to Adrien. “It was exactly what I needed, and I’m sorry I freaked out when you were just trying to comfort me.”

Adrien gave her a half-smile. “I’m sorry I tried to touch you when you were obviously upset. I should have figured out you wouldn’t want that.”

“But the breathing thing… that really helped.”

“Good, I’m glad.”

Marinette took a big breath. “Anyway… about what happened.” She bit her lip and blinked a few times. “I was bullied at my old school. A lot, actually. It… I mean it was never good, but it got a lot worse towards the end of last year. My parents pulled me out after it… got physical. More than usual, I mean.”

“Uh,” Adrien interrupted, rubbing his own hands on his pants just to keep from balling them into fists. “What… what was usual?”

“You know, tripping, shoving, people whispering behind my back, finding my things ruined, projects sabotaged… normal stuff.”

Adrien suppressed a growl. Marinette did not need anyone exploding in a rage right now.

“Marinette... honey… absolutely none of that is normal,” Alya put in, clearly suppressing tears from the sound of her voice.

Marinette pressed her face into Alya’s shoulder.

Adrien cleared his throat. “Yeah. What Alya said. None… none of that is, or should be, normal. Please tell me your parents complained to the school?”

“There was no point,” Marinette said, voice muffled because her face was still pressed against her best friend’s shoulder. “No one at school ever believed me.”

“Everyone at that school should be fired,” Alya growled. “And the kids sent to mandatory counseling. If it was that bad for you, it’s got be as bad for some of the other kids.”

Marinette pulled away and wiped at her eyes. “The more time I spend in counseling, the more I can see it, but… it’s still hard for me to believe that I didn’t somehow ask for it, or deserve it. I’m… actually really worried about the one friend I did have at that school. I tried so hard to get her to leave with me, but she wouldn’t.” She took another deep breath.

“Anyway… they started cornering me in the bathroom. For a month I couldn’t use the facilities at school alone without some girl coming up just to tell me how much everyone hates me. Then… when that didn’t get them what they wanted, they started getting physical. They’d pull my hair or shove me up against the wall. Some of them would punch or kick.” Another tear traced its way down her cheek. “Apparently they somehow got the idea that… that  _ I _ was the one bullying people.” She shook her head slowly. “Don’t ask me how or why, I don’t understand it. All of them should have known better, it’s not like they hadn’t watched me get bullied for years. Most of them even took part at one point or another.”

Adrien vibrated with silent rage, and even more so when he realized that what hurt Marinette the most wasn’t the physical hurts, but being accused of being a bully herself. 

“Oh my  _ god _ , Marinette,” Alya whispered. “You should have told me, I would have gone to the bathroom  _ with _ you!”

Marinette took a shaky breath. “I have to start getting over my fear some time, Alya,” she said. “I really thought I was ready, and honestly, it would have been fine if that girl hadn’t slammed the door open like that. I was just washing my hands and feeling relieved that I’d managed it, and then...” She briefly glanced over at Adrien. “Is… is she okay? I didn’t… I didn’t scare her, did I?”

Adrien scoffed, glad to have a distraction from his impotent anger. “Alix? She’s fine. She’s the second toughest girl I know, and not into what she calls mushy stuff. So while she felt bad for whatever she did to make you break down like that,  _ she’s _ going to be just fine. It’s you I’m worried about,” he finished, before realizing he probably should have kept that last thing to himself. Marinette didn’t need her friends thinking she was fragile all the time. Even if she was.

He shot a glance at her out of the corner of his eye, and was relieved to see a half-smile on her lips.

“That’s really sweet, Adrien, but you don’t need to worry about me. Something like this… it’s not a usual thing. I was just already on edge- any other time I would have been just fine.”

“Adrien’s right about Alix,” Alya put in. “She’ll take it all in stride and probably give you some pointers for fighting back next time. Not that there will  _ be _ a next time,” she promised.

Marinette smiled at that, but it slid off her face pretty quickly. “I’m sorry, guys,” she sighed. “I’m really sorry you had to see me like that. I know it’s not… comfortable, dealing with this stuff.”

“Don’t worry about that,” Adrien said, with a quiet intensity that surprised him. “We’re just glad that you’re okay, and that you aren’t in that… that miserable hell-hole a school anymore. And I promise that nothing like that will ever happen to you here, not if  _ we _ have anything to say about it!”

Alya squeezed her tightly. “He’s right. Anyone trying to bully you should really watch out, because I  _ will not _ stand by and do nothing.”

To Adrien’s surprise Marinette reached over, took his hand and squeezed it. At the same time, she snaked her other arm around Alya and hugged her back. “Thanks, guys,” she said quietly. Then she sighed and released both of them. “I’d better go get my things from the classroom and head home.” She glanced at her phone and sighed again. “I missed my train, though.”

“I can give you a ride home,” Adrien offered. “Both of you. It’s the least I can do, right?”

“Adrien, I can’t let you-”

“Nonsense,” Alya said. “Girl, the last thing you need right now is to be on a train with a bunch of strangers. And I doubt you have the cash for an Uber, much less a cab on you, right?”

Marinette blinked, but shook her head.

“That’s what I thought. Now say, ‘Thank you, Adrien,’ and go get your stuff.”

Marinette gave them both a tired and bemused half-smile. “Thank you, Adrien,” she repeated obediently. Adrien reached over and squeezed her hand with a smile of his own. 

“We’ll meet you out front, ok?”

Marinette stood up and rubbed her forehead. “Okay. I’ll… go get my stuff.”

The ride home felt strange with two extra people in the car, but Adrien and Alya took turns pointing things out and telling silly stories about their friend group. Nino stayed mostly silent, probably because he hadn’t known about what happened before Adrien filled him in when they were waiting for Marinette. Adrien could tell he felt awkward as the only one in the group who hadn’t been there, but he did tell one story when Alya prompted him.

Adrien sighed in relief when Marinette actually chuckled at the story of how Alya and Nino finally got together. Adrien had told the Gorilla to drop Marinette off first, mostly because he knew she wouldn’t want to be in the car alone with him and Nino, but also so he and Alya could go in with her and explain what had happened to her parents.

He was a little nervous to meet them, but he put that down to having bad news to tell. He knew it was ridiculous but he felt guilty for her panic attack, even though there was nothing he could have done to prevent it, and he’d actually done everything he could to pull her out of it.

But Tom and Sabine, while clearly delighted to meet some of their daughter’s friends, quickly changed their focus from them to her when they heard what had happened. They did insist on giving both Adrien and Alya some treats from their bakery as a thank you, but it was clear their attention was centered on Marinette when Adrien and Alya decided they’d stayed long enough. Marinette gave them both tired smiles and nodded to the door, clearly indicating she was ok with them leaving.

Adrien waved with his own half-smile as he held the door open for Alya.

“Well, that went… better than expected,” he said, when they got back in the car.

Alya stayed quiet for a moment, resting her head on Nino’s shoulder. “If I  _ ever _ meet anyone from Marinette’s old school…” she began, before cutting herself off.

“I know what you mean,” Adrien said. The rest of the car ride home was quiet.

\----

Later that evening, after a much needed nap and a fruitless text to Tikki about what had happened, Marinette logged into her UMSO account to check her messages. There was one from Chat Noir, which didn’t particularly surprise her since there was an event the coming weekend, but it’s content was surprising.

**Hey, just wanted to check in on you. A friend of mine had a panic attack at school today and it turns out it was bully-related. I hope you haven’t had any of those. If you have, I’m really sorry, and I hope it hasn’t happened again. Honestly, it was kind of scary to watch, and I bet it’s even worse to experience. So… please let me know you’re doing okay. I worry about you. -CN**

Marinette felt a lump form in her throat as she clicked the reply button.

**I’m okay. Thanks for worrying about me, though. I’m sorry for your friend, and I hope they’re doing okay now. -LB**

She debated telling him about her own panic attack, but figured that would just frustrate him since he couldn’t do anything to help. So she just hit the submit button and left it at that, then logged out and stood up to get her backpack. Panic attack or no, her homework wasn’t going to do itself.


	7. Chapter 7

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> The video game competition begins...

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Here, have some fluff!
> 
> I was up entirely too late last night writing most of this, and guys... this is officially my favorite chapter so far. I hope you like it as much as I do!

The next few days were hard on Marinette as she dealt with friends who were just a little more solicitous than she was comfortable with. Alya had filled in the girl squad, and they were all horrified on her behalf and promised to do what they could to make bathroom visits less traumatizing in the future. Pretty soon they hauled her to the principal’s office to make sure she would be allowed to go to the bathroom with a friend even in the middle of class. That… was awkward.

Tom and Sabine had made the school aware of Marinette’s bullied past, but they hadn’t expected or asked for any special treatment for their daughter. Neither did Marinette really want it, since she had decided a while ago that she wanted to learn how to be strong in herself again and not rely on others unless there was no other choice. But she was powerless against the combined wills of her new friends, and the principal was more than happy to allow Marinette the privilege of visiting the bathroom with a friend if that was what was needed to avert any more panic attacks. When she framed it as a consideration of lost learning time and unnecessary mental trauma, Marinette was forced to agree. So she left the principal’s office with a note for the nurse to enter into her files, and another one to carry with her to present to her teachers whenever she needed to leave class.

It was embarrassing. But it was also heartwarming, and yet another evidence that switching schools had been the right choice, the only choice. If only Tikki had come with her. 

The boys were a little easier to handle than the girls, since they seemed more embarrassed than anything else. They talked around the subject, trying subtly to make sure she was really okay- all except for Adrien, who made a point of being a little more physical with her, showering her with tight hugs and pats on the shoulder or back, and the occasional squeeze of her hand before he left the group. His understanding smile was probably the hardest to take, since it inevitably made Marinette want to start crying. Why was it  _ Adrien _ who had to be so nice to her? Why couldn’t it have been Nathanael? He was cute enough, in a starving-artist kind of way… 

But Nathanael was just now taken up with his side-gig. He and his partner, whom Marinette had yet to meet, since he attended a different school, were about to publish another edition of their comic, and Nathanael was hip deep in proofs and approvals. He knew about what had happened, and despite being a little frazzled, managed to assure her that if she ever happened to need his help, he would provide it. It was very sweet of him, but she could tell he wasn’t really focused on her at the moment.

Which left her trying to deal with Adrien’s attentions. She had told him how she felt about being his friend and he’d agreed to keep a certain distance, but she couldn’t fault him for trying to be a  _ good _ friend to her just at the moment. The problem was that her heart was trying to turn traitor despite her best efforts. It just wasn’t possible to receive so much attention from an admittedly drop-dead gorgeous model without feeling the slightest twinge of attraction. Especially since he had qualities beyond the physical, like endless kindness and gentle support. She reminded herself of Chat Noir’s existence, and how he’d been there for her from the very beginning, but… Chat Noir was a voice over a chat-line or words on a screen. Adrien was a living, breathing, physical presence in her life.

She was relieved when the weekend came and she could get a break from her friends’ well-meaning smothering. In fact, it wasn’t until her alarm went off the next morning that she remembered it was the weekend of the school video game tournament. She sighed, since most of her friends would be there competing, but reminded herself that many of them would be caught up in the competition, and… maybe it could be her chance to show them that she really was  _ fine _ . Then they would back off and she could breathe a little.

She got up and got ready for the tournament, choosing to wear athletic gear she’d designed herself. She’d participated in tournaments before, and they invariably got hotter than normal as spectators and competitors alike crowded around popular games. She wanted something she could sweat in while still looking passably cute.

Her gear was ladybug themed, echoing her gamer handle, but she didn’t think anyone would notice that, since it was subtle. The shirt was red and form-fitting, with short black cap sleeves, and the back had a mesh vent down the spine that was red with black polka-dots. The pants were black and baggy with a buckled hem just below the knee. They also had some polka-dotted mesh panels, as well as plenty of pockets. She’d gotten basic red canvas high-tops to wear with the ensemble, since she wouldn’t actually be doing anything strenuous, just sweaty. She tied her hair up in two buns high on her head with red ribbons dangling down, and then she was ready.

Sabine took time out from the bakery to go with her to the event and wish her luck, but she had to leave after dropping her off, so Marinette went through the basics of registering and getting her gamertag by herself. The gamertags were programmed with each individual gamer’s registration information, including what games they were playing. When a competition was set to start, a ten minute warning would beep. If the gamer wasn’t in the correct location after that ten minute warning, they were logged as a no-show and wouldn’t be allowed to compete. Once she was inside the event hall, Marinette located Alya and Nino just by finding the dance party stage. Adrien was there too, wearing a gamertag himself. That surprised her- she didn’t know he played competitively. But maybe he just participated in the school tournament. Which, now that she took a moment to look around, looked to be a lot bigger than just their school...

The minute Alya spotted her, she was tackled by the excited girl. “Marinette! Look at you, you look so cute! Did you make this?” She pulled back and twirled Marinette around while Marinette laughed freely. 

“Yeah. I’ve been to a couple competitions,” Marinette said, once Alya let her go. “I figured out pretty quickly that I’ll be doing a lot of sweating.” She shrugged. “Might as well dress for it, right?”

“Awesome, dudette,” Nino said, approving her outfit with a thumb’s up. He and Alya wore matching blue shirts with the album cover of one of his favorite artists printed on the front. Aside from that they wore normal jeans and sneakers. Adrien was also dressed in athletic gear, high quality black sweats and a hoodie, both accented with electric green piping, and there were small gold bells jingling at the ends of the hoodie’s drawstring. Marinette eyed it appreciatively. It was obviously tailored to him, but she couldn’t see a Gabriel logo or emblem anywhere. Then she realized what she was doing and flushed, glancing at his face long enough to see him suppress a knowing smile.

The Ultimate Mecha Strike competition wasn’t due to start until nearly noon, so Marinette hung out with her three friends, waiting for the dance competitions to start. Since the dance games were so high-energy, the preliminaries were set for the morning, while the finals were in the afternoon, to give the final four teams (or individuals) time to recuperate a little before competing for the top spot. Most of the competitions followed a similar pattern- weed out the newbies, then let the best players have a break before battling each other.

Soon enough Alya and Nino were called for a match, and Marinette tagged along to watch. She registered Adrien hovering just behind her- thanks to his height, he could see right over her head- but she got so caught up in the fluidity of Alya and Nino’s movements that she forgot about him entirely. They flowed from pose to pose, feet stamping in perfect time. It was honestly inspirational to watch, and Marinette knew, in some corner of her brain, that she was  _ totally _ going to design a set of competition gear for her two friends. They deserved to wear something that not only did justice to their synchronicity, but enhanced it, called attention to it. It didn’t surprise her in the least when they trounced their competition and walked away without more than a slight sheen of sweat on their brows.

“That was amazing!” she shrieked in Alya’s ear, tackling her friend as soon as she was near enough. “I can’t believe I just saw that, it was… it was incredible!  _ How _ do you do that?!”

Adrien laughed and threw an arm around Nino’s shoulder. “Years and years of practice. Seriously, I can’t tell you how many evenings I sat on a couch watching these two do the same set over and over until they got it right. It’s one of their couple things.”

“You should totally take up swing-dancing! Or even breakdance!” Marinette enthused. “I mean, you already know exactly what your partner’s going to do, and you’re completely comfortable with each other… it probably wouldn’t even take that long for you to learn the moves! You’d be awesome!”

Nino laughed outright while Alya blinked at the suddenly very un-shy friend hanging off of her in mild astonishment.

“Wow, Marinette,” she finally said, smiling bemusedly. “I didn’t know you cared that much.”

“ARE YOU KIDDING?” Marinette shrieked again. “My friends are  _ totally awesome _ , and I had no idea until this very minute!” She bounced up and down with a huge grin for a few seconds before coming suddenly back down to earth. She clasped her hands in front of her, index fingers extended, and used them to emphasize her points. “Okay so, we need to talk color schemes. Do you want to stick with blue, because honestly, I think you could rock something in orange, Alya, which, let me tell you, is very hard to do. Nino would look good in something green,” she mused, turning to him, fingertips tapping her lips. “Although, orange  _ could _ work for him, too… maybe with a hexagon pattern and white detailing? Oooo,” she trailed off, eyes getting something of a manic gleam, “That could really  _ work… _ ”

Adrien burst out laughing at the startled expressions on the couple’s faces, and clapped both hands on her shoulders. “Maybe let’s wait until after they win the competition, eh little designer?”

Marinette jumped a little and flushed. “Oh! Right.” She laughed nervously and wrapped her arms around herself, slightly startled to come into contact with Adrien’s hands, which had slipped down from her shoulders. She looked up to see him smiling fondly down at her, before the realization of what he was doing hit him. He squeezed her arms briefly and stepped away, eyes widened and face flushed.

Marinette blinked and turned back to Alya and Nino, only to catch Alya raising an eyebrow at Adrien and Nino shaking his head a little. Marinette stretched her neck and rolled her shoulders, trying to shrug off the slight feeling of tension between them, and refocused on the couple in front of her.

But then her gamertag beeped, alerting her that the UMS competitions were about to start.

“Oh, that’s me!” she said. “Good luck you guys! I wish I could stay and watch a little more, but…” she indicated the beeping gamertag. “I’ve got to get to my area before I’m logged as a no-show.”

“I’ll walk with you,” Adrien said. “I’m competing, too.”

And sure enough, Adrien’s gamertag was also beeping a warning. Marinette bit back a smile, reminding herself that she wasn’t supposed to get too attached, and nodded. “Ok.”

Adrien waved her forward with an exaggerated bow and smile, and Marinette rolled her eyes before heading off, although the action called the smile she was suppressing right back to her face.

\----

“Ok, what was  _ that _ about?” Alya said, watching the two walk off through the circulating crowds of gamers and spectators.

“Come on, babe,” Nino snorted. “Adrien totally has a type, and Marinette just happens to fit all the categories. Black hair? Check. Big eyes? Check. Shorter than him? Check. Smart and competent? Check. Gorgeous? Check. And, since I’m pretty sure she’s going to kick his butt at this game, I’ll check that too. And now for the piece de resistance:  _ into fashion and NOT chasing after him? _ Check, and check.”

Alya eyed him. “You seem awfully confident… to be honest, I was kinda worried at first that Marinette was going to develop a crush on him and then their friendship would be ruined, but… you seem to think it’s the other way around.”

“Oh, babe,” Nino said with a crooked smile. “Adrien has no idea just how screwed he is. But,” he said cheerfully, wrapping an arm around her, “I have a feeling he’s about to find out!”

Alya rolled her eyes. “If that’s the case, I feel sorry for him. Marinette is pretty insistent on keeping distance between them. And I honestly can’t blame her for that, but it means he’s going to get his heart broken.”

“He’ll be fine. I don’t think Marinette is as immune to him as she wants to be,” Nino assured her. “Now, does my queen want hydration before we tackle the next duo?”

\----

Adrien’s emotions had been all over the place since the day of Marinette’s panic attack. Before that he’d been able to see her as a friend- a cute, talented girl who inexplicably didn’t want to date him, or even be more than casual friends- and he was fine with that. But now?

Something had changed. He wasn’t quite sure what it was, he just felt very protective of her, like he always wanted to make sure she was happy. He’d found it hard to keep the distance she insisted on for the rest of the week. More than once he realized he’d invaded her personal space in some way only after he’d already done it. Fortunately, she didn’t seem to mind, but he felt bad about it anyway.

When he saw her the morning of the competition, it was like she’d suddenly become a magnet and himself a lodestone. Her outfit was stunning and well-conceived, and she looked so amazing in it… And when he caught her checking out his own clothing, he had the worst time trying not to smirk. He had to shove his hands in the front pocket of his hoodie more than once to keep from reaching out and pulling her close. He managed it through Alya and Nino’s first match, but he couldn’t help but enjoy her expression of pure awe as she watched them dance together for the first time. It was pretty amazing to watch, but he’d seen them practice together so often that his own sense of awe was lacking.

And then, when she became this bubbly, enthusiastic version of herself that none of them had ever seen, before abruptly switching to pure design mode, it was too much. Before he even realized what he was doing, he’d grabbed her shoulders, reflexively sliding his hands down to her arms, marvelling internally at the silky quality of her skin. And when she looked up at him with those huge blue eyes… his breath caught. He managed to pull himself together and quickly backed away, but the damage was done.

Thankfully, both their gamertags beeped and Adrien knew he’d be separated from her for at least an hour while he powered through the lower ranks of contenders. He had no real idea of her skill level, beyond her boast from that first day of school, but he had a feeling she was going to be good. He couldn’t resist walking her to the UMS area. It wouldn’t have made sense to go separately anyway, he told himself. He tried to ignore how his fingers still tingled from their previous contact.

They talked about the competition as they walked, Adrien bringing up how good Max was, and how he’d proved himself so often that the event planners just kept him for the final round and didn’t make him play all day like the other competitors. Marinette kept a confident smirk on her face throughout, as if she knew something he didn’t.

“I think this is it,” Adrien said, as they neared the roped-off area. There was an event worker posted at the entrance telling everyone where to go for their first matches. They split up, wishing each other good luck, and Adrien breathed a sigh of relief as the magnetic pull of her receded and his mind cleared a bit. He had no idea what he’d do if he was pitted against her later on, but for now he could concentrate on the competition.


	8. Chapter 8

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> The tournament, part 2.  
> Adrien gets to play Marinette and realizes... several things.

Marinette shook off the lingering feeling that something had changed between herself and Adrien and set her mind on defeating her opponents as kindly as possible. There were more girls here than she’d expected, but they were still the minority, and without the anonymity of an internet account she didn’t want to be ruthless until the very end to avoid making unnecessary enemies.

The competition called for everyone starting off with a clean slate, so she wouldn’t have the advantages of her customized mech anyway. She’d have to build up to the level she was used to, but she was looking forward to the challenge. It’d been a while since she started from scratch. She idly wondered if Chat Noir would be one of her competitors, or maybe in the crowd watching. If he was, he might recognize some of her more difficult power moves later on, and make the connection between competitor Marinette Dupain-Cheng and online player Ladybug.

Well, that was a problem for another time. Right now, she needed to focus on beating her first opponent.

\----

Adrien grinned at his disgruntled opponent and stuck out his hand while the computer monitor flashed PLAYER 2 WINS over and over again. The other boy quickly shook hands and then left without saying a word. Adrien was eight matches in, and they were pretty much all still going his way. He wasn’t being particularly generous, wanting to get them over with as quickly as possible, but he wasn’t being mean, either. So his competitors generally left feeling disgruntled, but not murderous.

He leaned back in his chair and stretched slowly. In a way it was nice that the winners of matches stayed at their stations until all the matches for that bracket had been played out, because it meant less wandering around trying to find the right station. But Adrien was beginning to feel the need to move. He stood and subtly stretched his back as well, while pretending to look around the whole area. 

He wasn’t looking for Marinette. Of course not. He was trying to stay away from her, and besides, she was probably hidden away behind some other computer monitor, engrossed in disintegrating her latest opponent. Naturally. Because she had to be good at this game, otherwise she wouldn’t have boasted about it. Adrien rubbed his hands over his face. It was entirely likely- if her claim had been true, and she wasn’t just talking about playing against her parents or one or two friends- that he would go up against her at some point later on. And he had no idea what he was going to do then.

His gamertag beeped, letting him know all the matches in the current bracket had been played, and he moved to the next station. Maybe Marinette would be in this one… there were so many competitors that the event coordinators had split them into two sections, each of which would play until only one contender remained. Then those two would battle each other to decide who got to go up against Max Kante, the reigning Parisian King of Ultimate Mecha Strike. So far, he hadn’t seen Marinette at any of the stations on his side, but maybe… but Marinette was nowhere to be seen, so he settled down at his computer and greeted his next opponent pleasantly enough.

Whether he faced Marinette in his own section or not, he had a feeling he’d be playing against her at some point. But the longer it took, the more likely it seemed he’d go up against her for the chance to play against Max. The stakes would be higher then… his palms got sweaty just thinking of it.

\----

Marinette was relieved to learn that she and Adrien were apparently in separate sections. It made it much easier to concentrate on her game play. She was taking it fairly easy on her opponents, making sure her wins were close matches. It hurt her in accumulated points, but her opponents actually smiled as they shook her hand and congratulated her on a well-played match. She counted that a distinct win.

But she was getting a little worried. If she continued in this way, she might not have enough accumulated points to win the chance to battle Max, even if she beat everyone in her own section AND the winner for the other ‘team’ as it were. If the last competitor before Max had enough accumulated points, he or she might still be able to play Max, even if they lost against her. It was time to step up her game, and since her gamertag beep let her know to move on, it was the perfect time. She hadn’t played any of these contenders, so even though they’d be able to tell her matches had been close, they wouldn’t know she’d essentially been holding back. They would assume her previous opponents had just been pretty close to her in skill level.

\----

Adrien lost track of time as he pulverized mech after mech, the strangers sitting beside him rotating in and out as quickly as he could manage. Every once in a while he had to get up and move to a different area. Finally, he played the last person in his own section. It was the hardest battle yet, and his opponent knew almost as many dirty tricks as he did. Almost.

Adrien let out a huge sigh of relief as the monitor flashed the news of his victory. His opponent didn’t seem very bent out of shape, simply shaking her head ruefully and commenting that she clearly needed to practice a bit more.

There was a short break before he had to battle the winner for the other side, so Adrien got up and stretched, walking around and even grabbing a bottle of water from the vending machines set up in each gaming area. 

When the time was up, he made his way to the back of the area, where a large screen TV would let all the other spectators watch the semi-final. The event coordinators had brought in a couch for the players to sit on, and Adrien’s heart stuttered as he saw the back of his opponent’s head. 

Black hair. Two buns, with red ribbons hanging down. She was laughing at something someone standing next to the couch was saying to her. Adrien couldn’t keep from smiling.

“Hey there stranger,” he said, leaning over the back of the couch and smirking at her. “Fancy meeting you here.”

Marinette turned to him with a delighted smile. “Hey Adrien! Are you all done for the day?”

“Not quite,” he said, coming around and sitting next to her. “I’ve got two more players to beat.”

Marinette blinked, her mouth opening in an adorable ‘o.’ Then her expression morphed into a wicked smirk of her own. “Really? What a coincidence. I have two more players to beat, too.”

Adrien grinned. “Amazing. Both of us with two more opponents to beat… what are the odds.”

Marinette laughed. “Apparently pretty good! Well… I can say I definitely look forward to seeing your skills, but I’ve got to warn you: I’m not going to go easy on you just because we’re friends.”

“I wouldn’t expect anything less. And,” he added, picking up the controller as the TV displayed the starting screen. “I look forward to beating you.”

Marinette snorted. “Please. I’m not easy to beat.”

“Why don’t we put a little bet on the outcome?”

“What did you have in mind?”

“Let’s see… if I win, you have to come over to my house for a movie night the next time I invite Alya and Nino.”

Marinette considered, then nodded. “Fine. But if  _ I  _ win,  _ you _ have to wear a complete Gabriel outfit to school next Monday, from shirt to shoes.” She paused, then added, “And I get to pick it.”

Adrien gaped at her. “Are you trying to kill me?” he said, dramatically clutching at his chest. “I will be mobbed the minute I stepped out of the car!”

“Worried?” She asked with another wicked smirk. Then she winked at him and his heart skipped a beat.

“Ha!” Adrien laughed, but it sounded a bit hollow, while his pulse thundered in his ears. Good lord, she’d actually winked at him. He quickly cleared his throat and turned his attention to the TV screen. “You just better watch out.”

The battle was… short. Marinette attacked from the first second of the game, and kept driving him back, hit after hit. By now Adrien’s health was pretty high, but even so, if he couldn’t hit her, he was going to lose. By some miracle, he got a strike in, but it was one strike against an opponent who never gave him an opening. Not that he didn’t try. He tried every dirty trick in his book, and he did manage to land some hits that brought her health bar down considerably. But she kept hitting him with combo after combo. The style was… very familiar. He frowned and redoubled his efforts, concentrating wholly on trying to get one single, particular combo on her. It was notoriously difficult to achieve but when it landed it was absolutely devastating, and if he could hit her with  _ that _ he’d be home free. 

He saw his moment and executed… and failed to hit her. And then, only a second later, she landed the  _ exact same combo _ on  _ him.  _ Adrien’s health went negative and the game flashed her victory across the screen. Adrien’s controller went slack in his hands. There was only one person he knew of who could pull that off every single time… but she’d never given him her name.

PLAYER 1 WINS

And then a few seconds later

PLAYER 2 ADVANCES

Adrien stared at the screen.

“... what?” he said under his breath. 

\----

Marinette tightened her lips and tried not to frown. She’d been afraid of this. Despite the damage she’d done to Adrien’s mech, her beginning nice-guy strategy had come back around to bite her. She didn’t have enough overall points to advance.

Still, she tried to look on the bright side. She hadn’t made unnecessary enemies, and she had won the bet with Adrien. She turned to smile at him, only to see him frowning back at her. He opened his mouth and pointed to the screen with an air of confusion.

“That doesn’t make any sense,” he said. “You beat me, and you didn’t even break a sweat! You should advance.”

Marinette’s smile faded a little, her disappointment showing through despite her best efforts.

“You won on points, Adrien.”

He blinked at her, as if he didn’t understand. Her eyebrows rose. “You gained more points during the rest of your battles than I did, so even though I won this round, you still get to fight Max. Congratulations!” she said, her smile growing wider again. She held out her hand.

Adrien took it reflexively, but just sat there holding it instead of shaking and letting go.

“Marinette, you should advance. You earned it.”

“No,” she shook her head. “I made a choice at the very beginning, and it ended up costing me. You won according to the rules we all agreed to abide by when we registered.” She got up, pulling her hand free of Adrien’s rather slack grip. “I’m going to go find Alya and Nino, but I’ll be there for the finale. Good luck!”

She walked off, throwing him a small wave and thumbs up, before turning back to the crowds, hoping none of them noticed that her eyes were swimming in tears. She had to find a restroom or even just a quiet corner to regain her composure. Years of bullying had given her the ability to avoid crying for extended periods of time, but sometimes the tears threatened to fall despite her best efforts. So she thought of Alya and Nino’s dance, and what outfits she was going to design for them, and fortunately, her tears dried up this time. She was still making her way aimlessly through the crowd so she pulled out her phone and called Alya.

“Hey,” she said, when her friend picked up. “Adrien and I just finished the semi-final. Where are you?”

She nodded when Alya described where she and Nino were waiting for the final dance-off. “Ok, I’ll be there in a few.”

\----

Adrien continued to sit on the couch, just taking a moment to take everything in. He had the time- there was a half-hour break between the semi-final and the final round of the UMS tournament.

Marinette was good. No. Marinette was  _ amazing. _ She could have wiped the floor with any of the competitors that had shown up today. So  _ why _ had  _ he _ won on points? He looked to the screen, which was still displaying the final tally of their scores. And she was right- he was ahead by points alone.

Something wasn’t adding up here. So he sat and tried to figure it out. The more he thought of it, the more he realized he’d recognized her style. It was brutal and unrelenting, and she’d pulled off the most difficult combo possible in the game seconds after his own failed attempt.

And then it hit him. He’d only seen one player with that level of skill. 

Marinette was Ladybug. 

He sat back against the couch cushions, head tilting back until he was staring up at the ceiling. He barely registered the thump of someone landing on the couch beside him, but after a few moments, he did look to see who it was.

Nino. A sweaty, exhausted Nino, who had spread-eagled the moment his butt touched the couch in a futile attempt to encourage the sweat to dry faster.

“Hey man,” Nino managed after a moment of catching his breath. “Alya’s going to kill me. I swear. That girl…”

Adrien quirked a smile. “I don’t think she’ll actually kill you,” he assured his best friend.

“Maybe not, but tomorrow,” he groaned and shifted uncomfortably, “I’m going to wish she had.”

Adrien laughed at that, then had a flash of remembrance. “Nino,” he whined, sitting forward to sink his suddenly hot face into hands that had gone cold and clammy. “I’m dead. Marinette killed me. Better get ready for the funeral because I’m gone.” 

Nino cracked an eye to look at the huge TV screen. “Yep. Looks like she did,” he said, closing his eye again. Then he looked again, and actually sat up when he took in what he was seeing. “I don’t get it. Were you player 1 or player 2?”

“Player 2,” Adrien mumbled around his palms, which he was pressing over the lower half of his face.

“So if she  _ won _ ... why isn’t  _ she _ advancing?”

“Overall points. At this level of competition it’s not enough to win the match, because the computers will tally all the points you’ve earned over the full course of the competition and  _ that _ total decides who gets to go up against the final boss.”

“Huh. Well… congrats, bro. But it kinda sucks for Marinette.”

“Oh, believe me, I know.”

They fell quiet while Adrien wrestled with his churning emotions. His online friend-and-sometimes-partner Ladybug was Marinette Dupain-Cheng, and a lot of things made more sense now. Ladybug had shared a lot of the bullying she endured with Chat Noir over the years. Marinette’s behavior, especially here at the tournament, made a lot more sense within that context. She had probably decided to make sure her early matches were close ones, instead of going for insta-kills, just to avoid hurt feelings. She’d never done that in an online match… at least, not for several years now. Now that he thought of it, though, he remembered how he used to tease her for holding back when he knew she could do so much more.

He shook his head. She shouldn’t have hidden her ability- she’d cost herself the ultimate victory, and now she wouldn’t get to prove herself against Max.

Or would she?

He pulled up the contest rules on his phone.

“Hey bro, you ok?” Nino asked, sitting up again and nudging him.

“Yeah,” Adrien replied absently. “Just checking something.” He bit his lip when he found what he was looking for. “Hey, do you think Alya would do something for me if I asked?”

Nino shrugged. “Depends what it is. We just won our competition, so she’s in a good mood. Probably having an ice-cream with Marinette right now.”

“Ice cream?”

“Celebration for her, therapy for Mari,” Nino clarified. “I split when Mari got there and it was obvious she wasn’t in the mood to third-wheel the happy couple.”

Well, that just made Adrien’s decision a lot easier.

“Hey do you think she was serious, earlier?”

“Who?”

“Marinette. Do you think she was serious about making us outfits?”

Adrien grinned. “I’ve seen a lot of designers get that look over the years. You are definitely in for several rounds of measuring, fitting, and adjusting.”

Nino looked faintly nauseous. “Great!” he said in a distinctly unenthused tone. “But you know, I’ve seen some of the stuff they make you wear… I don’t think I could pull that off. Like, at all.”

Adrien laughed, knowing exactly the kind of so-edgy-it-was-ugly styles he’d been forced to wear for a particularly awful fashion show last year. “Don’t worry! You’ve seen some of her designs- she’s not going to come up with something wild and crazy. That’s not her style.”

Nino raised an eyebrow. “If you say so.”

“Listen, I’ve got to go,” Adrien said, standing up. “You know, bathroom and all that before the last match.”

“Gotcha. Good luck, dude,” Nino said, dredging up a tired smile. “You know we’ll be here watching, right?”

Adrien’s smile twisted a bit. “I’m counting on it.”

He turned and walked away, pulling his phone back out so he could text Alya.

Adrien: Hey can you do something for me?

Alya: Depends. What is it?

Adrien: Can you put my phone number in Marinette’s phone? Without her knowing?

It was a few seconds before Alya replied.

Alya: … why?

Adrien: I want her to respond when I text her later, and I have a feeling she won’t if the number isn’t already in her phone.

Alya: Ok. So, again… why?

Adrien sighed. Alya could be so very nosy.

Adrien: I want to tell her something and I can’t do it face to face.

Adrien: It’s not bad, but she won’t react well if I say it in person. It has to be after the fact.

Alya: After the fact of what, exactly?

Adrien grumbled to himself. Apparently he would have to spill the beans a little to a result.

Adrien: I’m going to forfeit the last match, ok? The rules say if I’m a no-show, then the runner-up gets to compete. Marinette deserves to play. She earned it by beating me, and I’m not going to take that away from her. But I want to explain that to her later, when she’s already won the match.

He waited nervously for her reply. Alya was his friend, but she was getting very close with Marinette, too. What if she told her? Marinette would probably insist on leaving herself if she knew what he planned, and that was the last thing he wanted.

Alya: Alright Sunshine Boi. You can now text or call your girl anytime and she’ll know it’s you. I’m officially thanking you on her behalf, because she’s going to be mad at you for this, but she’ll get over it.

Adrien: You’re the best!

Alya: I know. Now get out of here.

Adrien: Already gone.

And he was. He was standing outside the event center, having relinquished his gamertag at the door, and all he had to do was wait for Gorilla to pull the car around from the parking garage.

\----

Adrien was doing homework in his room, trying to distract himself when his phone buzzed.

He glanced at it, since the ringtone wasn’t a programmed one. Unknown caller. Narrowing his eyes, he picked it up and considered a moment before answering.

“Hello?”

“Adrien Agreste, what the hell did you think you were doing?!”

Adrien grinned.

“Just letting you have the win you deserved. You did win, right?”

Something like a growl came through. “... Yes.”

“See? I was right.”

This time it was an annoyed huff. “It wasn’t fair. I was worried you’d… gotten stuck in the bathroom, or something. You could have told me.”

“Aw, you do care!”

“Excuse me, I care about all my friends,” Marinette retorted, and Adrien winced at the term. He quickly went on.

“And I didn’t tell you because I didn’t think you’d let me actually go through with it.”

“Of course not! It was completely unnecessary! You won, you should have taken it and beaten Max yourself.”

“I’m pretty sure only Ladybug is capable of beating him at the moment. Plus, she beat me for about the thousandth time, so I figured she earned it.”

Marinette was quiet for long enough that he took his phone away from his ear to make sure the call hadn’t dropped.

“Hello? You still there?”

Marinette took an audible breath. “You… how did you know?”

“Oh come on. Nobody else could have pulled off that combo you beat me with, and I’ve seen you use it a thousand times. You probably used it on Max, am I right?”

“... yes.”

“Well then, there you go. I am curious, though…,” Adrien bit his lip, wondering if he was pushing a little too fast, but unable to help himself. “Why didn’t you tell Chat Noir about your panic attack? I don’t like to think of you keeping something like that from me.”

Marinette gasped. “... Chat?”

“The one and only.”

There was a sudden loud clattering and banging sound, and Adrien pulled the phone away from his ear.

“Marinette? Everything ok? Marinette?”

“Sorry,” Marinette said, sounding breathless. “I dropped the phone. Sorry.”

Adrien chuckled, although nervously. “It’s okay. I kinda sprung that on you. I’m the one who should be sorry. And I am. Sorry, that is.” 

He deliberately shut his mouth before he could make a bigger fool of himself. It might be stupid, but he’d been imagining all sorts of scenarios where he told her he knew she was Ladybug and then she yelled at him and threw things, and wouldn’t come near him ever again.

“It’s ok,” she said, her voice sounding small and vulnerable. “I… I wondered if Chat would be there today, and I knew if he- if you- were, and you saw me play… well, there was a good chance you’d figure me out.”

“Oh.” 

“Are… are you disappointed?”

Adrien frowned. “Why would I be disappointed? You’re awesome!”

“Oh! … you really think so?”

“Definitely,” Adrien said, closing his eyes and remembering the way she’d smiled and winked at him earlier. As much as he dreaded showing up to school in his father's designs, he was definitely looking forward to having Marinette dress him. His face burned at the thought, but he couldn't keep a smile off it. And if he played his cards right, he might get her to agree to a movie night as well.

“So!” he said, grinning, “We should probably discuss that bet...”

\----

After he got off the phone with Marinette, Adrien called Nino.

“Yo bro, what’s up?”

“Nino,” Adrien said, bending over so his forehead touched the top of his desk. “I am so screwed.”

Nino snorted. “Why, because you like Marinette?”

Adrien banged his head, just a little. “Yes.”

“And you’re just now figuring that out? Dude, I’ve been calling it for weeks.”

“You knew?”

“Obvs.”

“Why didn’t I know?”

“I don’t know, dude. I figured you were trying to play the gentleman ‘cause she wasn’t interested. Too bad she didn’t know that was probably the best way to get your attention.”

Adrien sighed. “She doesn’t like me, Nino. What am I supposed to do?”

“Take it one day at a time. I’ve got a feeling she’s fighting herself over this.”

"Well, we did have a bet on the match we played against each other..."

“Oh? What was the bet.”

“If she won, she got to pick out a complete Gabriel brand outfit for me, and I’d have to wear it to school. If I won, she has to come over for a movie night with you and Alya.”

“Nice stakes! But… I mean, you both kind of won.”

“I know. We talked about that. We’re going to do both, now.”

Nino snickered. “Should I bring the torches and pitchforks to school on Monday?”

Adrien groaned. “You might as well… I’m going to need them to fend everyone off.”

“I don’t think it’ll be that bad. Pretty much everyone knows how much you hate getting mobbed by now. But as for the movie night… want me to arrange a surprise trip for Alya on the day?”

Adrien sat up. “I don’t want to make her uncomfortable.” It was a tempting thought, though. Marinette and him, alone in his room... He reminded himself he'd have that on the following day, because she was coming over to pick his outfit for Monday, and tried to get himself under control. "Probably not a good idea. I don't think she'd believe the trip was all that spontaneous."

“Got it. Well, we’ll cross that bridge when we come to it.”

“Hey Nino? … thanks.”

“Anytime, bro. Hey, you want to get online and play something with me? I found the stupidest app game of all time. Dude. It’s so bad, it’s good. You have to play it with me.”

Adrien smiled and turned to his computer. “Sure. Just give me a minute.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This chapter crept up in word count, but there wasn't really a good place to split it. Plus, I just want to be done with this part so I can get on with other things. ;D


	9. Chapter 9

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Marinette picks Adrien's school outfit, Gabe and Nathalie nearly have a heart attack, and Alix interferes in Marinette's life unexpectedly.

Marinette tried to keep her emotions under control as she stood in Adrien’s ridiculously large walk-in closet, perusing her options and trying not to think about how she’d been crushing on her idol’s son for the last three years without knowing it. Fortunately, she had better control over her facial expressions than her emotions, so all anyone would see would be a faintly pensive look as she considered color and style. Up to two thirds of his closet was packed with Gabriel brand clothes, including several formal suits, while the other third consisted of the more relaxed and mainstream clothes that he usually wore to school. There was a floor to ceiling cubby against the short end wall filled with shoes, and a tie-and-belt-rack hung on the back of the closet door.

Gabriel fashions, especially for men, though clearly couture were rarely haute couture- one of the things Marinette liked about the brand- so her options for Adrien’s outfit consisted of button up shirts, cardigans, and sweaters for tops, and slacks, khakis, and jeans, for the bottom. Curiously, Adrien didn’t have any shorts in his wardrobe. Perhaps that was because the season was already turning? Marinette wouldn’t have put it past him to have someone keep track of the weather and rotate his clothing accordingly, given the size and style of the house he lived in.

Marinette had not expected Adrien’s room, which was more the size of a conference room, or even a studio apartment. The only thing missing was a kitchenette, but Adrien did have a mini-fridge. There were several arcade games, a foosball table, and a rock-climbing wall, as well as several random ramp-type constructions that Marinette couldn’t guess the purpose of. He had an extensive library of books, movies, and games on a second-story balcony, and a whole sitting area complete with a huge flat-screen tv.

It was less a bedroom and more of a living space, seeing as the king-size bed tucked away in a nook between the two (two!) doors leading to the rest of the house, seemed to be more of an afterthought than anything else. And that was ignoring the huge curtainless windows that made up the entire outer wall of his room. Honestly, Marinette had no idea how he functioned without any privacy. However, criticizing his living quarters was not what she was here to do. And the sooner she got on with it, the sooner she could leave, which would be best for her currently skipping heart-rate.

“Is there anything in here you’ve actually enjoyed wearing?” she asked Adrien, who was leaning up against the closet’s doorframe with his hands in his pockets as he waited for her decision.

Adrien smiled and came toward her, unknowingly causing her breath to catch. It really was unfair how handsome he was. And now that she knew he was also Chat Noir it was so very difficult to keep in mind that she wouldn’t-shouldn’t-didn’t want to date him. At least not in the near future.

She bit her lip to keep a blush down and looked at him as innocently as she could while he turned his attention to his clothes.

“Um…” he rubbed the back of his neck before running his hand across several of the sweaters and cardigans. “This one,” he said, pulling an emerald green sweater a little out from the others. “It’s really soft and warm, and the color…” he trailed off, blushing inexplicably.

“It almost matches your eyes,” Marinette said, reaching for the sweater herself. It did feel very soft and comfortable, probably knit from cashmere. It had a shallow v-neck, eliminating the need for a shirt underneath, but it lacked any kind of decoration. Marinette pulled it out and hung it from her finger.

“Anything else?” she asked. While she was responsible for picking his outfit, she didn’t want to ignore his preferences. Chat Noir had complained more than once how, as a model, his preferences were pretty much ignored. 

Adrien raised his eyebrows quizzically. “Aren’t you supposed to be the one picking this outfit?”

“I want to be a designer-”

“You  _ are _ a designer.”

Marinette glared at him and he raised his hands in surrender, though a smirk crossed his lips.

“I want to be a designer, and a designer’s job is not just to fulfill the client’s needs, but also their desires.”

His mouth fell open a little and a blush crept onto his cheeks as he looked away. “Oh… right.” If she hadn't known better, she could have sworn he shoved his hands even further into his pockets.

Marinette frowned at his reaction, but then she facepalmed as she realized how that could have sounded to him. 

“T-their  _ fashion _ d-desires, Adrien,” she clarified, clearing her throat. “I want you to look good, yes, but I also want you to  _ feel _ good in the clothes I pick for you. Fashion is about confidence. If you’re uncomfortable in what you wear you won’t be the best version of yourself while you wear it.”

Adrien nodded, but his eyes, which had snapped back to her, lingered just a moment too long before he turned his attention back to the clothes.

In the end, Marinette had five completed outfits to choose from. She’d hung them all over the back of his couch (his full-size couch! That didn’t even take up that much room in this huge space!) to study them. She considered them for about five minutes, checked the projected weather on her phone, then chose two and held them up against his chest to check the colors against his skin tone. 

One outfit was centered around a soft blue button up shirt which she had paired with one of the more subdued graphic tees from Gabriel in a contrasting color, meant to be worn underneath it, and a pair of medium blue jeans. The other centered around the first emerald green sweater he’d picked, paired with cream-colored corduroys. Adrien stayed quiet through her process, but she felt a jolt every time her fingers brushed briefly against his chest as she held up the garments one after the other.

She had to sternly tell herself not to lose control, but it was only by refocusing on the clothes themselves that she could maintain her own composure.

She sighed and pursed her lips. “I really like the green sweater combination, but it’s going to be too warm for that tomorrow… I guess we’ll go with the blue button-up.”

“Ok,” was all Adrien said to that.

“But,” Marinette continued, “I want to show you a trick about how to wear it. Is that ok?”

“Sure,” he said, grinning with a little gleam in his eye. “Should I put it on?”

This time Marinette bit the inside of her cheek, fully aware that he was flirting with her. She was determined- determined!- to remain professional here.

“Yes, but you don’t need to take your shirt off, since you’ll be wearing it over a t-shirt anyway,” she said, quickly taking the blue shirt off the hangar and handing it over. He shrugged himself into it and Marinette walked over to him again, taking his left arm and unbuttoning the cuff. She swiftly inverted the cuff and pulled it up to his bicep, then started loosely rolling the shortened sleeve up until it rested just below the cuff. Finally, she turned the cuff back down over the rolled part. The effect looked casual but stylish and she smiled. She did the same to his other sleeve, then stepped back, considering. 

“All done?” he asked.

“Not… quite,” Marinette said, stepping forward again. The collar on this shirt wasn’t too wide or the points too accentuated, so she popped it and stepped back again. Then she smiled. “I like it.  _ That’s _ how you should wear any of your button-up shirts if you want to look casual but still stylish.” She glanced up at his face again, relieved to see that he was inspecting what she’d done to his sleeves instead of looking at  _ her _ (with those soft eyes) for once.

He walked over to the full-length mirror fastened to the wall beside his closet door and surveyed himself, turning and twisting in front of the mirror, swinging his arms a bit to judge the constriction from the rolled sleeves and playing with the popped collar. A crooked smile played over his mouth before he turned back to her. His eyes held nothing but admiration.

“Well, Marinette... I think you’ve actually done something I thought was impossible- come up with a casual Gabriel look that I won’t mind wearing in public!” he said, grinning broadly. 

Marinette did finally blush at that.

\----

When Adrien came down for breakfast the next morning, Nathalie almost did a double-take. Restraining the impulse, she did allow herself to ask a single question.

“Are you reconsidering your stance on your school wardrobe, Adrien?” was all she said, but internally she was screaming something more along the lines of  _ who are you and what have you done with Adrien?! _

Adrien’s expression went through a fascinating change. He blushed- actually blushed- and his usual polite-but-detached smile morphed into a crooked grin.

“Ah... no. Actually, I lost a bet. Kind of.”

“I see.”

Nathalie did not see. Not in the least. Adrien had made it very clear, when he first started attending public school under protest, that he might be forced to wear his father’s creations during photoshoots and at publicity events, but on no account was he going to subject himself to instant recognition by his fans during school hours. Gabriel had reluctantly agreed, and thereafter Adrien was allowed to choose his own clothing for school- for the most part. He still had the assistance of a personal shopper, who had certain veto rights on what Adrien picked.

Regardless of her own feelings however, she had to approve of the clothing he’d chosen for himself today. It really wasn’t that different from what he normally wore to school, although the jeans fit his figure better, and there was the addition of the overshirt. However, it was the style of the overshirt that really caught her attention. She hadn’t been the personal assistant to a fashion mogul for over a decade without learning anything, and the rolled sleeves that somehow still displayed the cuff and the popped collar lent a casual flair to the whole outfit. She tapped a message on her omnipresent tablet before ushering him to his solitary seat at the table. 

A few minutes later, Gabriel came into the dining room. Adrien looked up in surprise, since his father rarely ate breakfast with him. Dinner, at least four times a week, yes. But the early morning usually had his father engrossed in design work, and Adrien never came home for lunch anymore as it was too far of a drive.

Without a word, Gabriel took a seat at the head of the table and since Nathalie had sent another message to the kitchen, a plate of food appeared before him shortly. Gabriel began eating, casting no more than a cursory glance at his son as he did so.

“Good morning, dad,” Adrien offered.

“Good morning, Adrien.”

“I hope your-”

“Just eat your breakfast.”

Adrien obediently fell silent and ate rapidly, glancing at his phone and probably realizing he didn’t have much time before he needed to leave. He finished in a few bites and rose to grab his school bag from his room.

“Just a moment, Adrien,” Gabriel said, staring at something on the tablet Nathalie was holding for him. Then he looked at Adrien and Nathalie could see the sudden tension in the boy’s shoulders. “Why have you suddenly decided to start wearing my line to school?”

Adrien blushed again, “Ah, well, I lost a bet. With a classmate. I played against her at the school video game tournament this last weekend, and she won. So,” he indicated his outfit, but Nathalie noticed that he was smiling, which was odd, because she knew how much he hated wearing his father’s line in public.

“I see.” Gabriel took a moment to run his eyes over him, taking in every detail. “Well, I’m glad to see your sense of style is finally developing. I was about to give up hope.”

Adrien cleared his throat and looked uncomfortable, rubbing the back of his neck. “Well, actually I didn’t pick the outfit. She did.”

Gabriel actually lowered his utensil to the table. Nathalie, standing behind him, had a feeling one eyebrow was raised. “ _ She _ picked it?”

“Uh, yeah. Marinette wants to be a designer. So, she picked the outfit.”

Nathalie wasn’t quite sure what Gabriel’s reaction would be. He could be… unpredictable. While clearly caring for Adrien, he was still on the cold side, treating him with a certain amount of respect, but little obvious affection. 

“A good thing for her, then, that she had my clothes to choose from, instead of whatever mainstream trash you’ve bought into lately. It’s hard to go wrong with my designs.”

Adrien flushed, this time with anger. “Marinette is actually really talented, so I’d appreciate it if you wouldn’t dismiss her like that.”

Nathalie felt her own eyebrows trying to rise at that, but swiftly brought them back under control. So, Adrien cared for this girl, perhaps as more than a friend. Interesting. A few years back Gabriel had hoped Adrien might start a relationship with the daughter of one of his business associates, but nothing had come of that. But this...

“I have little faith in your ability to judge, but by all means- if you feel that strongly on the matter, perhaps you should invite your friend for dinner sometime.”

Adrien wasn’t shocked at that, since his father usually did insist on meeting his friends at some point, but Nathalie was a little puzzled by an almost hurt look, brief though it was.

“I could, but she won’t accept.”

Gabriel stopped eating again. 

Adrien shoulders slumped slightly. “She’s already told me that she doesn’t want us to be more than casual friends, dad. She’s afraid of what people will say if we get too close.”

“Hm. That’s… unusual.”

“Yeah,” Adrien said sounding, to Nathalie’s ear at least, as if it was worst thing in the world. Then he perked up. “But she did say she’d come for my next movie night with Nino and Alya, so… if I let you know far enough in advance, you could meet her then.”

“If she is so reluctant to be known as your friend, and you think she would not accept a dinner invitation, why is she willing to come over with two of your closest friends?” Nathalie could hear the skepticism in Gabriel’s voice, and to be honest, she shared it. It was highly unlikely any teenage girl, no matter how dedicated, would be immune to Adrien’s good looks and charm.

“Well, I said I lost a bet, but… she kind of lost it, too. It was a case where her beating me didn’t  _ actually _ mean she’d won? It’s complicated. Anyway, we talked afterwards and decided we’d both do what the other had suggested for stakes.”

“I see. Well, be sure to inform Nathalie in time, and I will be here to meet her at the very least. But now you’d better run along or you’ll be late to school.” 

Adrien caught Nathalie’s eye with a questioning look and she nodded encouragingly, even as Gabriel returned his attention to the sales sheet currently displayed on her tablet. Then he was gone, and Nathalie turned her own attention back to the business at hand. In the back of her mind, though, she continued to wonder.

\----

Despite his surprising liking for the outfit Marinette had picked for him, Adrien was still nervous about showing up to school in it. He still had fans, after all, and though the ones at school had just about learned not to mob him, some of them were very… passionate… when it came to him. Nino had grinned widely at seeing him, but hadn’t said anything, so Adrien let it go.

At first it seemed like no one was going to notice anything different about him, but as he and Nino made their way inside, more and more of the students around them started staring. Adrien grumbled mentally, but he was also secretly flattered for Marinette’s sake. After all, her choice was subtle enough that people were ignoring it at first, but striking enough that they did notice the change. The staring was probably due to them trying to figure out what the change was. The attention was annoying, since Adrien felt like school should be one place where he wasn’t constantly being stared at, but then he supposed that this was why it was a valid stake in a bet in the first place.

When they got to the classroom, Alya looked him up and down and then whistled, and Chloe- distracted from her phone by the whistle- first looked up and then smiled incredulously.

“Adrien!” she called. “Are you finally giving in to the inevitable?” she asked archly. “Because we might have to reconsider our truce if you stop looking like a scruffy peasant.”

Adrien rolled his eyes. “Yeah, because that kind of comment is really going to draw me right back to your side,” he said sarcastically. “You know why we stopped being friends, and you’re only a little bit better than you were back then. Not enough has changed.”

Chloe pouted. “But Adrikins-”

“ _Don’t_ call me that,” Adrien said. 

“Ugh, fine,” Chloe rolled her eyes and turned her attention back to her phone. “Let me know when you get tired of slumming.”

Adrien felt Nino tap him on the shoulder and only then noticed he was glaring at Chloe with his hands balled up into fists.

“It’s not worth the screeching, bro,” he said.

Adrien grumbled but slid into his seat, managing to smile at the girls behind him. Alya leaned forward to say, “I have to say, I like this look, Agreste.”

Adrien smiled more genuinely. “Yeah, Marinette really did a great job, didn’t she?” He hooked his arm around the back of the chair so he could look more fully at her. “Speaking of… I believe this fulfills my half of the bet.”

Marinette grinned back at him, and… was it his imagination, or was there more warmth in it than usual? Her eyes twinkled.

“Yes, yes it does. Which just leaves my half,” she said, leaning forward on crossed arms. “But of course that’s up to you.”

“It’ll probably be at least a few weeks,” Adrien admitted. “I’ve got a lot of photoshoots for the winter lines coming up.”

“That’s fine,” Marinette said, a little too quickly. “Just let me know.”

“I will,” he said, with a wink. It might have been his imagination again, but he thought she blushed a little. He turned back around as the teacher came in with a satisfied smile.

\----

Marinette finished changing out her textbooks after the last class and closed her locker door, only to jump and recoil a little when someone was leaning right on the other side. For a moment her pulse pounded in her ears, but she took some deep breaths and focused. This wasn’t her old school. So far, no one had attacked her. She was safe.

“Sorry,” the girl said, and Marinette recognized her as the pink-haired girl from the bathroom.

“It’s ok,” Marinette said. “I’m just a little jumpy when startled.”

The girl smirked. “I’m Alix,” she said, holding out her hand. Marinette shook it and smiled back. “Marinette.”

“Cool. Look, I’ll get right to the point. I've heard a lot about you, and there’s someone I think you should meet, ‘cause I think you two could really help each other.”

Marinette blinked. “Uh… okay?”

“Great. Meet me in the gym locker room in about ten minutes.”

Alix stood up and walked off, leaving Marinette slightly confused about what she had just agreed to.

Ten minutes later, she entered the girls locker room in the gym, only to see Alix talking animatedly with an asian girl wearing a fencing uniform. She wasn’t wearing her gloves yet, and her foil was laid across her lap. Since there were a few other fencers already out in the gym- including Adrien, if she had but known it- Marinette supposed there was going to be a fencing lesson soon.

“Alix?” she called, making her greeting a question as well.

Alix waved her over. “Marinette, this is Kagami Tsurugi, and pretty much the toughest girl I know other than me. Kagami, this is Marinette Dupain-Cheng, and she’s had some problems with bullies.”

The two girls sized each other up, Marinette obviously a little uncomfortable, and Kagami with the best stoic face Marinette had ever seen. Meanwhile, Alix edged away without either of them noticing.

“Hi,” Marinette offered first, her smile a little timid. “I’m not quite sure what Alix was thinking when she told me to come meet you, but… I’m always ready to make a new friend?”

“Do you always hesitate?” Kagami asked, blunt and a little cold.

Taken aback, Marinette replied. “Uh, I’m not sure what you mean.”

“Your greeting to Alix was more a question than a statement. Your greeting to me likewise.”

Marinette took a breath. “It’s a coping thing. It’s been a long time since I could trust… anyone, really, aside from one friend and my own parents. I’m in therapy now, and I think I’m getting better, but…”

“I see.” Kagami patted the place on the bench next to her and Marinette sat down. “I believe Alix thinks we can help each other. I am… not the best with people. I tend to be blunt and I do not always understand social cues. My mother insists I spend most of my time on pursuits she deems worthy, so I have not spent as much time with my peers as most children my age. I… do not know how to relate.”

“I can understand that,” Marinette said softly. “But from what I’ve seen the last month and a half, this school is full of people who would be more than willing to welcome and accept you. My very first day here I was kind of adopted into a friend group, and they’ve been wonderful to me!”

“Mm,” Kagami said, not sounding convinced. “Alix mentioned something about bullies?”

Marinette clenched her hands to keep them from shaking. “Yes. I’ve been bullied the last five years. Last year it got so much worse that my parents pulled me out of school and I finished the year online.”

“I don’t understand why you didn’t fight back.”

Marinette blinked rapidly. “I tried. I tried everything I could think of, but nothing worked. Nothing they tell you try worked. If I fought back,  _ I _ was the bully. If I tried to record a confrontation, I was invading their privacy, and nevermind what the recording actually proved. There was never any physical evidence of what they did to me except what could be explained away, and none of the teachers or adults were ever around when it was happening. Th-the main bully,” Marinette gulped, “she was very good at lying. And she’d been doing it so long that no one even thought to question it when she started telling people I was bullying her. And she was smart. She’d get other people to do the dirty work for her, so she could keep up her ‘saint’ persona.”

Marinette looked down at her hands, tightly clenched in her lap. “I did try to fight back. But it just got worse every time I did, because I had no support. I realize that, now that I have a few months of therapy behind me. It doesn’t matter if you fight back when literally everyone is against you.”

Kagami nodded. “That makes sense. One person alone cannot fight an army head-on and expect anything but death. However, one person alone can sneak behind enemy lines to kill the leader. This liar, she is still active?”

Marinette stared at her. “Yes...”

“I would make a deal with you. I will teach you how to think in terms of strategy, so that you can finally deal with the source of the problem, and you will help me to relate to the people around me.”

Marinette gave her a bemused smile. “I’m not sure how helpful I can be, but I’ll do my best. Friends?” She held out her hand, and Kagami took it with a small smile.

“Indeed.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Adrien just loves shoving his hands in his pockets around Marinette. Because that's not a clue at all. My poor boy...


	10. Chapter 10

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Marinette gives back to the class.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Here is some lovely fluff for you! You may need a lint roller...

Marinette took a deep breath of fresh air as she stepped outside on her way to the metro for school. She loved Fall. Well, she loved all the seasons, but Fall and Spring were special because they embodied  _ change. _ The very air felt different as the seasons turned. It energized her as nothing else could.

Marinette practically glowed as she thought about the special packages in the bag she carried. She’d only been at school for two months, but she had paid attention. All the kindness and acceptance she’d experienced had not gone unnoticed or unappreciated. And today she’d be able to give a little something back.

\----

Marinette sat at her desk, apparently engrossed in watching a video on her school tablet, but secretly squirming and internally squealing as each of her classmates entered the room. There were plain, butcher paper wrapped parcels at everyone’s usual seat, labeled with their names. She drank in the wondering comments, the gasps of surprise as the gifts were unwrapped, and the kind comments from other classmates as they admired each other’s gifts.

It wasn’t a special holiday or anything, Marinette had just felt like it was time to start giving back to the people who were helping her slowly trust again. Even the ones she didn’t know well, and even Chloe, who had made such a bad impression at first, but then had just... left her alone.

The gifts were mostly fall-themed.

Chloe got a phone charm in the shape of a maple leaf, and since Marinette had noticed she tended to prefer shine and sparkle, the maple leaf was colored in with sparkly orange and yellow crystals. Sabrina had gotten a maple-leaf pin- enameled this time- for her trademark beret.

Juleka got a set of hair clips embellished with fake berries that resembled the fruit of a poisonous plant that stayed bright and fresh all winter long. There was a note explaining it and Marinette was pleased when she heard Juleka’s muted “Awesome,” as Rose read about the poisonous effects. Rose got a small handbag- the main fabric was a pink so dark it bordered on maroon, with yellow and red fall leaves appliqued to the front. She squealed in delight, excitedly showing it off to everyone around her.

Mylene got a cloth banner, designed with sewn channels on each end so sticks could be inserted to hold it taut. The center of it had sewn lines of soft velcro, and there was a plastic pouch of velcro letters to go with it. The border of the banner was an eye-catching yellow and orange swirled fabric. Mylene gasped as she opened it, realized what it was, and then burst into tears when she realized she wouldn’t have to make her own protest signs anymore.

Ivan, who now sat beside Mylene, patted her awkwardly on the back before unwrapping his own, much smaller present. It was a button, styled after the logo of his favorite band- the Zombie Skull-Crushers- but the logo had gotten a Dia De Los Muertos treatment. Marinette saw his small smile as he bent to attach the button to the strap of his messenger bag.

Nathanael got a set of expensive markers in fall tones, and Max, who sat beside him, got a little drawing of his favored mech from Ultimate Mecha Strike, but in red and orange with accents of maroon, and a quippy little caption underneath. Max’s reserved smile and Nathanael’s obvious shock made her feel warm inside.

The most important gifts, those for Alya, Nino, and Adrien, had yet to be opened, because they were running late. A chime from her phone made clear why.

Alya: Girl where are you. We been waiting!

Marinette: already in the classroom. had some reading to do.

A few minutes later, her closest friends walked through the door. Marinette had to work to suppress a blush when Adrien smiled at her. Usually she didn’t have to work so hard at it- it had gotten easier in the weeks since the tournament and the revelation that he was her longtime internet friend. She reminded herself daily that her goals as a designer were more important than a little crush, and that seemed to do the trick. But with the added expectation of giving him a gift today… she couldn’t suppress the blush entirely.

She turned her attention to Alya, sliding into the seat beside her and raising her eyebrows at the rather large packet in front of her. 

“What’s this?”

Marinette shrugged. “Everyone had something on their desks this morning.”

“Huh.” Alya started opening it and Marinette practically vibrated in her seat. In the front row, Adrien and Nino were opening their own packages. A gasp from beside her pulled her attention back to Alya.

Alya held up the top to her new dance competition outfit. It was an orange crop top in a flowing, off-the shoulder design, meant to be worn with a white sports bra underneath. There was a short orange, white, and purple plaid skater skirt, hemmed with bouncing felt balls, and a pair of white exercise pants to wear under it.

In the front row, Nino was staring at his own, coordinating outfit. His had a white, tank-top style undershirt with a short sleeved orange button up to wear (unbuttoned) over it. His white parachute pants had orange suspenders, meant to be worn hanging off the sides so they could sway and bounce with his every move. The nylon fabric of the pants had a subtle hexagonal pattern when the light caught it just right. 

“Girl...,” Alya breathed and Marinette fought to keep her grin under control. She couldn’t help laughing though, as Alya just about tackled her off the bench entirely, babbling at the top of her lungs about how much she loved it.

That caught the attention of the whole class, who all gathered around (even Chloe and Sabrina!) to admire the outfits and show off their own presents. Marinette managed to escape attention until Adrien, who cradled a keychain with a little black cat charm on it, asked what her present was. He had a warm, knowing smile on his face, and Marinette was sure he’d figured it out, but it didn’t matter.

Everyone stopped talking and Marinette, no longer able to contain her smile of pure joy, looked around at all the happy faces and said, “You… all of you.”

She was almost crushed by the sudden mob of grateful girl friends trying to express their appreciation. She laughed the whole time, trying to answer everyone at once, while the boys and Juleka stood around, grinning at her and murmuring their own thanks.

\----

There was no doubt about it. Adrien was in trouble. He was in deep and there was no hope for rescue. And Marinette… well, Marinette wasn’t exactly making it easy. She still insisted on keeping distance between them, although she was starting to warm up a little more in their interactions.

That was good. Great even! But it was so  _ slow _ , and she also just kept being more wonderful every day. Just recently she’d struck up a friendship with Kagami, with the result that Kagami was thawing bit by bit towards those around her.

Kagami always been relatively friendly with Adrien, but she’d spent more time with him than any of their other peers, because their parents’ working relationship often meant they were forced to attend the same, boring events. That, and she was the best fencer of their year and probably always would be, which meant they were often paired. Still, there had been that undercurrent of ice to their interactions.

But now Kagami was taking the time to push up her face-shield and smile at her opponent at the end of a bout, congratulating them on what they did right, instead of her usual judgement on their failures. She still didn’t take it easy on anyone, always pushing for improvement. But Adrien had noticed that the rest of their teammates, instead of sighing in resignation or even disgruntlement when they were paired with Kagami, now faced her, if not with eagerness, at least with more good nature. They were even beginning to joke about her beating them among themselves.

Adrien could tell it was Marinette’s influence. He wasn’t sure how they’d met, but he did know Kagami tended to approach all her relationships with a back-scratch attitude, which made him wonder what Marinette was getting out of the deal.

And now this- personalized gifts for each of their classmates. Something everyone would enjoy and appreciate, even him. The little black cat keychain stayed warm and safe in his pocket as he went through the day. He’d told Nino that his dad had finally agreed to let him take driving lessons, so the keychain was clearly a good-luck charm. He had no idea how Marinette had gotten wind of it, but she obviously paid attention to the people around her. And the fact that she did all this just because she was happy to have  _ friends _ ? To be surrounded by people who weren’t watching for weaknesses, weren’t constantly waiting for her to fall so they could kick her when she was down?

His heart thumped painfully in his chest. It  _ just. wasn’t. fair. _ His head hit the desk in front of him before he realized what he was doing. He quickly sat back up, face red as the teacher threw a frown his way. Nino nudged him and gave him a raised eyebrow when Adrien finally looked over. Adrien rolled his eyes at himself and shrugged, nodding his head back to where Juleka and Marinette- still seatmates- were concentrating on the physics lesson. 

He didn’t  _ actually _ look. If he saw Marinette now, either with her tongue poking out of the corner of her mouth or biting her lip, and with that furrow of concentration on her brow… well, he was pretty sure he wouldn’t be able to control his reaction. So he didn’t tempt fate.

Nino gave him a sympathetic smile, then turned his attention back to the lesson. Nino had actually been caring about classes this year, which made Adrien feel better about forcing him to study when they hung out. Now, half the time it was Nino who cracked the first book.

Adrien sighed and tried to pay attention. After a moment he became aware of a small slip of torn notebook paper sitting near his elbow.

_ You should tutor her in physics. _

Adrien blinked and looked over at Nino, who seemed engrossed in the lesson. Hesitantly, Adrien wrote a response and slid the paper back.

_ Tutor who? _

_ Marinette, you idiot. Math isn’t her strong suit. _

The teacher called on him just then. Adrien’s face burned, but he managed to answer the teacher’s question accurately before answering.

_ I can’t.  _

_ WHY NOT? _

_ Because I can’t control myself around her. She’s like a magnet. _

When Nino didn’t immediately slide the paper back, Adrien glanced over to see what he was doing. He was glaring at Adrien for some reason. Out of the corner of his eye, he caught sight of Marinette rubbing her forehead as she stared in confusion at the formulas on the board. Once again he was overwhelmed by an impulse to jump up and fold her into his arms. To protect her from anything and everything life could throw at her. To kiss her until they were both reeling. He swallowed convulsively and turned back to a board that might as well not be there for all he saw of it.

\----

“ _ This _ is why you are in public school,” Nino said, quietly but passionately, as they made their way to the next class. “So you can learn how to deal with stuff like this. But do you care? NO!”

Adrien kept quiet as Nino continued to rant about his lack of understanding, and Nino could tell he wasn’t really paying attention.

“Are you even listening to me?” Nino asked loudly, annoyed.

“Yes?” Adrien replied. “You’re saying that public school is where I’m supposed to learn how to deal with a crush, right? But Nino, that’s assuming anyone actually teaches  _ lessons _ on  _ what to do _ if you can’t stop thinking about someone!”

People in the halls around them turned to look and Adrien flushed, realizing he’d said that way too loudly. He ducked his head and started speed-walking to class. Nino caught up with him at the doorway.

“Dude. Bro. You are learning that lesson  _ right now, _ ” Nino said, “and I know it’s hard, but you know what? You’ll be the better for it. But you can’t avoid this forever. At some point, you will  _ have _ to tell her how you feel, no matter what you think she’s going to say about it. For your own sanity, my man.”

Adrien slumped into his preferred seat, closing his eyes and pressing on them with the heel of his palms. He groaned.

“You’re probably right. I do feel like I’m going insane right now.” Adrien admitted. “Every time I see her, Nino,  _ every time _ … god, I just want to… protect her? Like... make sure she’s always happy.”

“...  _ and? _ ” Nino pressed, trying not to look amused. Adrien’s first crush was hitting him pretty hard, but he had to admit he’d been just as head-over-heels for Alya before they finally got together. In a different way, though- Alya had never struck him as needing protection from  _ anything _ , and she’d probably make him regret it if he ever tried.

Adrien blushed again and slumped forward, hiding his face behind his hands. He mumbled something. Nino smirked and sat down. “Didn’t quite hear that.”

Adrien removed his hands to glare at him. “Do I really have to say it?”

Nino patted him on the back. “It’s better if you get it all out there.” He slid his phone out of his pocket and, with a few swipes and glances, started recording. Sometimes it paid to date an up and coming journalist with way too many gossipy tendencies. Besides, he knew Alya would want to hear what Adrien was about to admit to.

His face was starting to look like he’d gotten a bad sunburn, but Adrien finally leaned closer and quietly said, “Ok, so... maybe I want to kiss her senseless.” The way his eyes slid away from Nino’s was proof that he’d probably imagined doing a whole lot more than that, but Nino didn’t push it. This time. Instead, he chuckled and said, “Welcome to the joys of manhood, bro. Wanting it... but not getting it.”

Adrien groaned again.

\----

Marinette had to wait until after school to give Alix and Kagami their gifts. She felt a little bad about Kagami’s… they’d only known each other for a little over a week, so she hadn’t even known what to get for her until the day before yesterday. There was no way she would have had time to make anything, so her gift, like Nathanael’s, was store-bought. But at least with Nathanael, she knew he would appreciate a gift of high-quality art markers. With Kagami… they were making progress, but she still kept everything pretty close to her chest.

Alix, however, had been much easier. Marinette had knitted a set of matching fingerless gloves and leg-warmers for her. She caught up to Alix at her locker.

“Hey,” she said, a little out of breath. “I wanted to give you this. As a thank-you.”

Alix took the soft package and stared at her. “For what?”

“For being my friend,” Marinette said, with a glowing smile. “Sorry, I’ve got to go give Kagami her’s before fencing starts. See you later!”

She hurried off before Alix could do much more than open her mouth in surprise. Alix tore open the package, letting some of the bright colored fluff inside drop to the floor. Alix frowned at the soft knitted things, then realized what they were. They were striped in her favorite colors, so Alix could wear them with any of her athletic outfits, and they were… perfect. Useful and thoughtful, both. Alix smiled to herself, shaking her head a little at the swiftly vanishing figure of her newest friend.

Kagami was just coming out of the locker rooms when Marinette ran into the gym.

“Kagami!” she called, waving to her. The other girl stopped, still and serene in her fencing uniform, always under control- unlike Marinette.

“I’ve got something for you,” Marinette panted. “Do you have some time before fencing?”

Kagami offered a little smile and turned back to the locker rooms. Neither of them saw an already masked fencer following their movements.

In the locker room, Marinette got the last package out of her backpack. It was small, but a little heavy, and surprisingly squishy. She handed it to Kagami with a smile. Kagami took it hesitantly.

“It’s not my birthday for another two months,” she said, voice a little flat. By this time Marinette was beginning to understand that she got more and more outwardly emotionless the more her emotions were affecting her. It was one of the reasons she’d chosen her gift.

“I didn’t know that,” Marinette admitted. “But this isn’t a birthday gift, it’s a just-because-you’re-my-friend gift,” she said, explaining it to her. No one else had needed the explanation, but then, no one else was Kagami.

“I don’t understand,” Kagami said, but her voice was softer, almost wistful.

“Friends do things for and with each other. Sometimes they buy each other gifts- for various reasons, but usually just because they are friends.”

Slowly Kagami started unwrapping the plain paper. Underneath was a layer of bubble wrap, explaining the squish factor. Under that… was a crystal carving of a fencer. It was perfectly clear, and the detail was exquisite. Kagami couldn’t help but gasp.

“It’s beautiful,” Kagami said. “Thank you.”

“If it’s ok… there’s more here than just the carving. Can I explain it to you?” Marinette asked hesitantly.

Kagami nodded, not looking at her.

“The fencer is strong- you see her stance? And she’s hard, unyielding,” Marinette tapped the crystal. “But one hard blow and she would shatter. She’s not invincible. She’s also brave- she’s see-through, Kagami. She doesn’t hide anything of herself. And more…” Marinette pulled out her phone and turned on the flashlight. She shone it through the little figurine. “She takes in light and spreads it. Do you see? It’s… it’s kind of what I see in you.”

Little pinpricks of light danced around them, barely visible in the bright lights of the locker room, but unmistakable. Marinette looked back at her only to see a tear running down Kagami’s cheek. 

“You don’t like it! I’m so sorry, I’ll get something else…!” she reached for the figure to take it back, but Kagami cupped her hands protectively around it.

“It’s perfect,” Kagami said. She sat holding the figure for another moment or two before saying. “Friends… sometimes embrace each other, don’t they. Could we do that?”

Marinette smiled again and nodded, letting Kagami give her the most awkward hug of her life.

\----

When Marinette came out of the locker room a few minutes after Kagami had regained her composure and left, she was pulled into another hug, this one tight and somewhat familiar. The white fencing uniform of the hugger was another clue.

“Hello to you, too,” Marinette said into his chest, trying not to laugh. Maybe she should have been annoyed at the intimacy, but she couldn’t help it- Adrien’s hugs were  _ nice. _ Marinette always felt more relaxed and happier after a hug from him.

Adrien breathed a little laugh into her hair before letting her go. When she stepped back he was gazing at her with the soft eyes again, and Marinette had to look down to avoid responding with soft eyes of her own.

“Sorry, I didn’t get a chance to thank you for the keychain earlier,” he said. “I think it’s great what you’re doing with Kagami, by the way. She really needs a friend like you.”

Marinette shrugged and hunched her shoulders a little, noticing that Adrien’s gloved hands were convulsively fisting themselves over and over. “It’s not a lot, really. I’m just helping her open up to people.” She paused. “Are you stretching your hands? Is that something that fencers have to do?”

Adrien coughed awkwardly. “No, it’s just… this uniform doesn’t have pockets,” he said, sounding a little strained. Was he blushing? “Anyway. Um. I know you want to keep some distance between us, but… I’m pretty good at physics and I’ve heard you complaining about it. About, you know, not understanding it? So, um, maybe we could do homework together and I could sort of explain some stuff?”

Marinette let out a small sigh. As much as she wanted to… “Thanks, Adrien. I appreciate it. It might not be the best id-”

“It’s just homework,” Adrien said quickly. “We don’t even have to leave school, we could do it in the… in the library, or something. Just… friends helping each other. I actually need help understanding my literature homework? Nino could come, too! He needs help… as well.”

Marinette chewed on her lip, considering. No one could think anything if Nino were there, too, right? Maybe she could even convince Alya to come- not that Alya would need much convincing if Nino was there.  _ Better yet, make it class-wide thing- come study in the library for an hour after school- get your homework done with friends! Pastries will be provided! _ She thought.

“... is it okay if I invite everyone else, too?” she asked, hesitating a little. She didn’t want to hurt his feelings, but she could tell he was uncomfortable with this. Maybe Nino or Alya had pushed him to this- both of them were convinced he had a crush on her. It… wasn’t something she wanted to encourage. Or that was what she told herself, anyway.

But her suggestion seemed to make him relax, which made  _ her _ relax, which made both of them more natural. He stopped fisting his hands, clasping them behind his back instead, and smiled. “Yeah, that’s fine.”

“Good! I’ll… ask everyone tonight, then. Tomorrow after school? Or would during lunch be better?”

“I have a photoshoot after school tomorrow, so lunch.”

“Okay. Well, I’ll see you tomorrow!”

Marinette waved and walked away, trying to deny the giddiness she’d felt at the thought of studying alone with Adrien. She couldn’t afford that kind of feeling, and he didn’t feel like that about her anyway… his reaction to her inviting everyone else proved that. And she was happy with their friendship the way it was. She just had to remind herself of that a dozen times on the train ride home.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So, Marinette was starting to bug me in this, and I didn't figure out why until I realized that Lila would totally play up the 'victim of bullying' role in order to gain sympathy and friends. Obviously Marinette wasn't making anything up or trying to gain sympathy, but it was bothering me because I hadn't written anything about what makes them different.
> 
> So... here is a chapter where Marinette shows her generous nature, her creative talent, and her appreciation for what everyone's done for her. Lila talks a big game, but she's never actually done anything for the class- in canon- whereas Marinette is constantly giving her time and effort to make the people around her happy.
> 
> Character will always shine through in actions.


	11. Chapter 11

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Plagg and Lila both make plans...

Tikki walked into school with almost a spring in her step. Almost, because she still had to watch for unexpected shoves and trips, and of course the whispers never ceased. But just knowing that Plagg was waiting for her, that she got to see him first thing every day, made a world of difference. It was similar, but different, to the time when she still had Marinette as a best friend.

There was still a twinge of regret and shame whenever she thought of Marinette, but it had dwindled until now all she had to do was tell herself that Marinette was better off for it to fade entirely. And thinking of Plagg was always a welcome distraction.

She spied him loitering in a sheltered nook just off the courtyard. He had intelligently placed his back to the wall and was keeping a weather eye out. Since he’d become such a blatant friend of hers- maybe they’d even picked up on the boyfriend vibe by now, she mused, smirking- he’d also become a target for the Lila fanclub. Strangely, though, they didn’t target  _ him _ as rabidly as they seemed to target  _ her _ . It was like it was almost an afterthought, whereas with her, it was deeply personal for some reason. Still, she was handling it. She could take care of herself. She could.

Tikki smiled and walked over to Plagg, but didn’t let herself get too distracted by his nonchalant elegance. There was always the potential for some anonymous bullying when they were out in the open, so she paid attention to her peripheral vision. But Plagg… he was like a cat- he managed to look graceful and poised no matter what he was doing, and always landed on his feet. Tikki had to admit to being just a tiny bit jealous of that…

He pulled her into a tight hug when she got there, unintentionally putting pressure on a fresh bruise on her mid-back. Tikki hissed before she could stop herself. Plagg immediately let go and held her a little away from him. 

“Tikki…” he said, sounding both disappointed and defeated. He sighed at her frown. “Where is it this time?”

“It’s  _ just _ a bruise,” Tikki said firmly. “It’s nothing I can’t handle. And,” she admitted, sheepishly this time, “it’s in the middle of my back.”

“You don’t seem to understand that I hate to see you get any bruises at all. At least, this way. If you were doing martial arts, or free-running, or something that you actually  _ enjoy _ that occasionally results in bruises it would be one thing. But this?” He shook his head. “You should go to the nurse. Or at least let me take a picture.”

“It’s not like I don’t get cuts and burns from cooking,” Tikki began, shaking her head. “I’m used to pain.”

“You shouldn’t be used to this,” Plagg insisted. He pulled her into a much more gentle hug, then cupped her face with one hand and kissed her tenderly. Tikki melted. It wasn’t like she didn’t agree with him… not really. It was just… she was afraid that if she openly acknowledged the injustice of it all that she would crumble- just like Marinette had. She had to be able to face Lila without freezing, and to do that she had to keep telling herself that she could handle whatever Lila and her goons could dish out. 

But for now she could focus on Plagg, and the feel of his lips on hers, and the way his thumb stroked her cheek… She leaned into the touch, but then caught a whiff of something foul. She abruptly pulled away, nose wrinkling, searching for the offensive scent. It was coming from… Plagg’s hand?

She grabbed it and sniffed deeply, then recoiled. “Ugh! What did you touch this morning that your hand smells so awful?”

Plagg chuckled, grinning wickedly. “I can’t tell you- it’s a surprise. But I promise, I’ve washed my hands three times already and the smell still lingers! It bodes well, does it not?”

Tikki had to laugh. Whenever Plagg planned a ‘surprise’ for someone, it was for one of the Lila fanclub members, and it usually humiliated them. He tended to target the ones who were hardest on Tikki, and… maybe it was petty, but Tikki couldn’t find it in herself to care. 

“Anyone I should take care to avoid today?”

“Ah, no, sugarcube,” Plagg said, giving her another peck. “That would be telling. Let’s get to class.”

Tikki sighed, letting herself collapse briefly against his chest. For all her protestations of confidence, she didn’t really want to leave the safety of the nook. 

“Fine,” she sighed again, “But you better keep your hands away from my nose until that smell goes away!”

\----

Lila watched Tikki and the new boy-  _ Plagg _ , as he insisted on calling himself (she mentally rolled her eyes)- walk to class hand in hand. It was… disappointing. Yes. Distinctly disappointing. It was one of Lila’s few failures and that didn’t sit well with her. Plagg was pretty cute, after all, and Lila had decided years ago that all reasonably good-looking boys were hers to toy with until she got tired of them. And even then, she liked to string them along a little longer, just for the satisfaction of keeping their attention on her.

She hadn’t had an unbroken record on that precisely, but she could still enthrall most boys with very little effort. Plagg on the other hand… she frowned unconsciously.

“What’s wrong, Lila?” chirped Claudette. “Is the sun too bright? I know your eyes are weak because of that solar eclipse thing a few years back. I have some sunglasses if you need them!”

Lila fell back into her classic ‘poor-me-I-don’t-want-to-impose’ attitude. “Oh no, thank you Claudette, but I really couldn’t…”

“Nonsense! It’s the least I can do, after you warned me about Robere.” Claudette’s face abruptly fell as she thought of the boy she’d so lately had a crush on.

Lila accepted the proffered sunglasses and reflecting on that latest triumph. Claudette had been part of her retinue since college, but recently she’d been pulling back to spend more time with a certain boy, supposedly to ‘study,’ but Lila could see through an excuse like that without even trying. Yes, breaking up that potential pairing was easy. Not that it hadn’t been worth it, but it hadn’t been any kind of challenge, either.

Tikki on the other hand… it had become very important to cut her down to size. And Plagg wasn’t helping the situation any. Lila decided to take the opportunity Claudette had innocently handed her. She put on the sunglasses, but she continued to pout in a concerned way.

“I’m… well, I’m actually a little worried,” she said, twisting her fingers together. “Tikki…”

“Is that frog bothering you again?” growled Suzanna from behind Lila. Suzanna was one of Lila’s best assets. Always ready to take an idea and run with it, whatever direction Lila indicated.

“Well, actually…” Lila hesitated, taking a moment to decide if she really wanted to go down this path. If she took the heat off of Tikki, she might have time to recover before Lila felt comfortable targeting her again, and be harder than ever to take down. However… yes. Separating Tikki from her sole support was definitely worth the risk. And of course it had nothing to do with the fact that Plagg had soundly rejected  _ her. _

Lila still couldn’t figure out why Plagg had decided she wasn’t the innocent victim she always took care to appear. When she had first tried to sink her claws into him- right after homeroom on his first day, with the excuse that she wanted to welcome him properly as class representative- he’d informed her, quite firmly, that he wasn’t interested and to leave him alone. She had, of course, turned that to her own advantage by making a fuss over how rude he’d been, turning most of their classmates against him from the very beginning. Unfortunately, she had to admit that might have been a mistake, since that just pushed him and Tikki closer together.

“Actually, Tikki hasn’t done anything to me lately,” Lila said, making her tone hesitant. “I’m not sure why…” She noted the pleased smirks of her court and hid a smile. They’d been getting physical with Tikki, but it hadn’t been making much of a difference in Tikki’s overall emotional state- another indication that Lila needed to change her tactics. “But well, you all know how rude Plagg was to me that first day he came here? And now… it seems like they’re always together outside of class. I just… I don’t trust that boy, and if he was willing to be that harsh with a friendly stranger… I just wonder if Tikki knows what she’s in for.” Lila cast her eyes down and sagged a little. “I’ve overheard her complaining of bruises. I just… no matter what she’s done to me, no one deserves  _ that _ .”

There. That ought to get her ‘friends’ thinking in the right direction.

“Meh, let her get roughed up a little,” Suzanne said with a vindictive sneer. “If you ask me, she deserves it.” Several others murmured agreement with her.

Lila frowned, and this time it was actually genuine. For once they hadn’t picked up on her cue. Maybe she’d been a little too emphatic over the supposed bullying she was enduring from Tikki?

“Look, I appreciate how much you all want to protect me,” Lila said, voice a little firmer but still held to the gentle tones of the outwardly saintly. “But I really don’t think anyone deserves to stay in an abusive relationship. Don’t you think Tikki might be nicer if she didn’t have to deal with Plagg?” She left a calculated pause. “After all, she didn’t start to get really nasty until after he came. I mean, sure, she was best friends with Marinette, and we all know about how awful Marinette was to me- so  _ jealous! _ … but Tikki was never as bad, in fact she used to just ignore me, so…” 

Lila glanced around to see how well the soil was accepting the seeds she’d just scattered. There were thoughtful looks, although one or two still scowled at the idea of helping Tikki in any way, shape, or form. Lila decided she’d done enough for now. She’d been working so hard at villainizing Tikki that it was going to take her dim-witted companions a while to come around to the idea that she might need “protecting” from the only support she currently had. Yes. It was going to be a delicate operation from here on out… a challenge even. Lila smiled, making sure it conveyed gratitude for the benefit of the students around her.

For now, it was time to make her way to classes. She carefully rose to her feet, making sure to favor her ‘sprained ankle.’ After one close call in the early years of her rivalry with Marinette, she’d made sure always to wrap the ‘injured’ appendage so she could remember which one it was. This time, the occasion was the fact that gym was going to focus on running sprints and Lila hated to get sweaty for no good reason. Thus, she ‘sprained her ankle’ over the weekend, while involved with one of her bogus charities. Lila had already forgotten which one she’d mentioned, but it hardly mattered. She didn’t even need to forge a doctor’s note any more, the wrapped ankle and a regretful face was enough to get her excused.

“Let me help you,” Georgio gushed, stepping forward with an adoring look in his eye. Lila had recently taken to favoring him, and he was  _ very _ grateful. Always carrying her heavy book bag for her, dashing off at lunch to get her something to eat… Lila hadn’t decided if she was going to reward him with more than smiles and sweet comments yet. He wasn’t the most handsome of her suitors, but he wasn’t bad, either. If he played his cards right, he might get a kiss or two.

Lila fluttered her eyelashes and looked down as he swept her up into a bridal carry, the picture of maidenly embarrassment. No one noticed the lack of a blush.

“Oh, Georgio… you can’t carry me to every class. You’ll be late yourself,” she said, faking concern for him.

“No teacher would mark me tardy when they know I’ve been helping  _ you _ ,” he said, with perfect truth. Lila kept the smirk that threatened to appear down to a sweet smile. Really, she should have subborned an athlete as her personal lackey before now. 

\----

“Plagg.” The young man was rather tall and had curly, medium-brown hair and kind eyes.

“Robere.” Plagg regarded him as he would any other would-be ally- with a certain amount of suspicion. However, this one had already gotten him something valuable, and he had plenty of reason not to like Lila anymore.

The two boys grinned at each other behind the school after the last bell. Plagg had walked Tikki to the metro entrance, but surprisingly she’d had nothing new to report today. It seemed the girls who had been ganging up on her had left her alone for once. 

“So, did you do it?” Robere asked with a grin bordering on evil.

“It was… not exactly child’s play, but yes.”

“Where did you put it?” Robere asked eagerly.

“In the space under her locker. The smell should filter up slowly enough she will not notice anything until it’s too late.”

“Awesome, dude,” Robere gave him a satisfied grin, and put his hand out. “I’d ask how you managed that, but I don’t think I want to know.”

“Can I count on you for future services?”

“Why not?” Robere shrugged. “ _ She’s _ got lackeys, I don’t see any reason why we can’t form a team of our own.” His expression faltered as he remembered who one of those aforementioned lackeys was.

Plagg rested a hand on his shoulder. “Don’t worry. It will take time, but we can win them all back, even Claudette.”

“If you say so,” Robere said, eyeing him. “She’s something else, man. I had no idea what she was really like before she started spreading rumors about me, and even then I didn’t suspect it was her until I got through just about everyone else it could possibly be.” He scratched his head. “It’s like I didn’t want to believe it was Lila.”

“Most people don’t want to believe that someone they’ve trusted for years has been lying to them the whole time.”

“I just…” Robere paused. “I hate that… that I was a bully by proxy, I guess. I did some seriously questionable stuff, man. And I didn’t realize it because I thought I was protecting someone who needed it. Punishing someone who deserved it.” His face scrunched up in shame. “I can’t believe I-”

“While it is good to recognize your faults,” Plagg interrupted, “I believe the best plan for moving forward is to make sure you don’t repeat them.”

“Right. Right,” Robere said, scrubbing his face with one hand. “Well. I’ll see you around? And I’ll keep an eye out for Tikki, alright? The least I can do.”

Plagg nodded his acceptance of that and Robere turned to go. Plagg smiled to himself. He’d known it couldn’t have been as bad as Tikki made it out to be. Anyone who lied and manipulated as freely as Lila did  _ would _ have made enemies. All he’d had to do was to find those enemies- people who had been interfered with just because Lila had wanted something they had, or didn’t want them stealing her limelight among her group of particular friends. Now he had a small but growing group of people with a grudge against Lila. Slowly they could start to build up evidence against her.

Lila was smart- he would give her that much. She almost never did any dirty work herself, unless it was a maliciously pointed threat disguised as a sweet comment- she left all that to her devoted followers who were one and all more than happy to take up the cudgels in her supposed defense. But her strategy was unimaginative and one-dimensional. 

Lila depended mostly on the people around her either feeling sorry for her or admiring her because of her larger than life tales of her many exploits. She claimed to know every celebrity that hit it big-time in some way or other- usually because she had a role in saving them from some hurt or humiliation. And she also claimed to be involved in numerous charities that, of course, didn’t actually exist, but provided her with excellent excuses to get out of doing anything she didn’t feel like doing.

Plagg was on the fence about how he felt about that. On one hand, it was impressive that she’d gotten so far on so little substance. On the other, it made him sick to think of the lengths people would go to for such a selfish individual, when they could easily find out for themselves just how much of a liar she was. Particularly when, even in this mess of a school, there were students who had accomplished more than she ever would, claims or no claims.

Tikki had filled him in pretty thoroughly on just what Lila had done to her former best friend, and according to her, Marinette’s talent and character blew Lila’s out of the water without even trying. He would admit to being a little salty at the girl for leaving Tikki to bear the brunt of Lila’s malice herself, but… if what Tikki said was true, he couldn’t really blame her for it. And Tikki continued to insist she didn’t blame Marinette for leaving, besides claiming that she hadn’t even told him half of what Marinette had endured for years. Everyone had a breaking point, after all. It just galled him that Lila was now targeting  _ his _ girlfriend.

Well, hopefully her stinky locker would make her focus all her manipulative attention on herself for once.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I'll give you two guesses what Plagg planted under Lila's locker and the first one doesn't count. ;)
> 
> Also... someone made me [fanart!](https://sidsinning.tumblr.com/post/190202860956/reverse-crush-goodness-read-danse-inversee-by) You guys! It's wonderful and perfect, and Adrien has his HANDS IN HIS POCKETS! It's beautiful and you should definitely check it out. Shout out to the wonderful sidsinning on tumbler!
> 
> (please let me know if the link isn't working for you)


	12. Chapter 12

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Plagg's stinky plan!

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This is a shorter chapter, but it's a natural stopping point. I'm not sure how soon the next chapter will be up- real life is rearing it's ugly head at the moment, making it hard to focus. Probably not more than a week, though, and hopefully sooner!
> 
> Also, thanks to csad for the suggestion of durian fruit! It was totally going to be camembert, but durian fruit works much better for plot purposes. Thanks again!

The smell that pervaded the locker rooms was, to put it mildly, disgusting. Tikki grimaced, covering her nose as soon as she stepped inside, and resolved to get her things from her locker as quickly as possible. And for once, she didn’t feel like she was the center of (negative) attention as soon as she stepped through the doors, either, which was a nice change. All around her, students were hurrying along, most of them expressing some version of “it stinks in here,” with many versions being more  _ colorful _ than others. None of them were standing around chatting like they normally did. The courtyard, Tikki predicted, would be crowded this morning.

It wasn’t until she had gotten  _ all _ of her books, as well as her gym clothes, hastily stuffed into the rapidly dwindling space in her backpack, that Tikki recognized the smell. Granted, she hadn’t gotten much more than a whiff of it off Plagg’s hand, but… 

She burst through the doors of the locker room into the clean air of the courtyard with a sigh of relief and a wry grin. That boy…

To his credit, he looked sheepish when she finally spotted him, taking shelter under the open stairs to one side.

“Did someone get a little too clever with their prank?” she demanded, though in a muted voice so as not to call attention to them. Even with the distraction of the truly awful smell in the locker room, there would be people looking to target them. And more (rightfully this time, if she were honest) if they overheard that particular remark. Most of the students here were quick to jump to the worst conclusions where Tikki and Plagg were involved.

Plagg hunched his shoulders defensively. “I didn’t think it would spread so far,” he admitted. “But I suppose… I probably should have done some research before planting it.”

Tikki raised an eyebrow. “Are you going to take care of the problem, then?”

“I can’t,” Plagg said, with a shrug. “From here on, it’s going to be up to the janitors to figure out what’s causing the smell and remove it.”

Tikki’s mouth dropped open. “Seriously? You’re just going to pretend you don’t know anything? It’s not just Lila that’s suffering, here!” she hissed the last part, glancing around to make sure no one had moved close enough to overhear.

Plagg stepped closer, winding his arm around her waist and pulling her in so he could speak in her ear. “If I come forward now, that will just cement Lila’s lies about me, and possibly about you, with the admins. If that happens we won’t be able to fight back at all, and I’d rather have a few days of stinky books before throwing in the towel like that. Don’t worry, I covered my tracks very well- no one will have any idea  _ who _ put it under her locker, although they might figure out how I did it.” He kissed her cheek just in front of her ear to make it look like they were just being couple-y.

“You mean it’s something that will be suspicious? Because honestly, it smells like something died in there.” Tikki asked with closed eyes, responding to his touch despite the topic of conversation.

Plagg chuckled, and the rumble she felt through his chest was delicious. “It’s durian fruit, so yes, it will be suspicious. Although, it would be nice if some rats found it, ate it, and died of it. That would destroy the evidence as well as providing an answer for the smell.”

Tikki gave into temptation and wrapped her own arms around his neck to kiss him. His response was gratifying, pulling her closer. She backed off after a moment. “Well, let’s hope the local rat population finds durian fruit both delicious and poisonous, then.” She sighed. “At least the smell is going to be all anyone’s talking about for the day.”

Plagg smirked. “Well, that was the idea, although… I admit I didn’t quite see it happening this way.”

Tikki sighed again. “I love that you want to protect and defend me, but honestly… I can’t see it making any difference.”

“Oh no? Look over there,” Plagg nodded to the doors of the locker room, where Lila was shoving her way out of a knot of students blocking them, face almost green. She ran to the nearest trash can before utterly losing it. She retched helplessly into the bin, then slid bonelessly to the ground beside it when she was through. Already her coterie of followers were gathering around, offering help, but Lila waved them all away, one hand on her stomach, the other covering her mouth. Her messenger bag had fallen to the ground beside her, spilling some of the books out onto the pavement. For once her distress was very real.

Tikki wasn’t even tempted to grin. Seeing Lila like that, while it might once have given her pleasure, wasn’t funny. If she knew anything about Lila, it was that she would find a way to make this personal. It already was, of course, but as far as she knew, it wasn’t… yet. She looked away and back at Plagg before Lila had the chance to catch her eye. If she wasn’t paying attention to Lila, the odds were… not  _ good _ , but better, that Lila wouldn’t try to pin it on  _ her. _

“Plagg,” she said, a little desperation in her voice. “Can’t you see that whatever you do to her is just going to come right back around on us? She has too many people on her side.”

“I’m working on that, actually,” Plagg said, rubbing her back soothingly. Tikki had to admit it was nice not to have any new bruises. Her bruises had had time to heal over the weekend, and if only people would refrain from elbowing her in the crowded halls and “accidentally” shoving her into counters and desks, she would be happy.

“What do you mean?” she asked lazily.

“I’m recruiting,” Plagg answered, smirk actually audible in his tone. “For the Lila Rossi Hate Club. You’d be surprised how many students here are disillusioned with her half-heroine-half-martyr persona.”

Tikki pulled back, both eyebrows rising in disbelief. “Really? I was under the impression that club would only have two members- three if we admit off-campus members.”

“You really thought you and Marinette were her only victims over the years? I’ve talked to people who had their projects purloined and passed off as Lila’s, or outright ruined because they were better than hers. Relationships that were broken because of her separate lies to each of the individuals, which they only discovered months after the breakup. People who were promised all sorts of things, from introductions to support to resources, all of which came to nothing, of course. Even people who found themselves stuck with the aftermath of Lila Rossi’s lies, who had to comfort their friends, or pay fines, or even find a way to hold an event despite the disappearance of the funds collected to pay for it.”

Tikki closed her eyes again, shame flooding her. “I… didn’t know. I didn’t even see it.”

“A drowning woman can’t be blamed for not noticing the person stung by a jellyfish, cherie,” Plagg said gently, his deep voice thrumming through her.

“But I should have realized,” Tikki insisted, frowning. “That’s how it all started, after all. Lila was lying to everyone in the class, Marinette found out about it and started trying to call her out. But everytime she did, Lila turned it back on her somehow. Eventually, people stopped listening to her entirely, assuming she was just jealous of Lila.” Tikki stopped. “Lila… she stole some of Marinette’s designs, and managed to pass them off as hers by changing some kind of hidden stitch identifier that Marinette always put into her designs. The only reason I didn’t fall for it was because I’d seen those very designs in Mari’s sketchbook- the same sketchbook that mysteriously disappeared when she brought it to school one day. Marinette was crushed- she’d had several sketchbooks ruined by then- and everyone turned on her except for me. She stopped fighting back after that. And… that’s how it’s been ever since.”

Plagg kissed her. “I’m sorry,” he murmured. “It’s going to stop. I’ll make sure of it.”

“As long as you don’t get yourself expelled,” Tikki said. “Don’t laugh! It’s happened before!” she added, as Plagg chuckled.

The bell rang, ending their little tete-a-tete. The courtyard emptied as everyone made their way to classes. Tikki walked with Plagg, both keeping a weather eye out, but even so, she was unprepared for a sharp pain in her back. Flinching away, she saw Lila’s number one hench-woman.

“I know you had something to do with this stink,” Suzanne growled. “It’s bad enough you target Lila, thinking you can get away with anything you want, but this time  _ she _ isn’t the only one affected. We’re  _ all _ affected by this, and you can bet I’m not going to forget it any time soon. You’re in for a world of hurt.” She brandished something and Tikki saw that it was a pencil, point sharpened for stabbing purposes. Tikki made a grab for the pencil, thinking to get it away from her, but only getting a hard poke in the middle of her palm for her efforts. Plagg pushed between them, as Tikki grabbed her hand, massaging the sore spot.

“Back off,” he growled. “Tikki had nothing to do with this and you know it. Something probably just died in there, and you just want to pin it on Tikki because Lila pays more attention to  _ her _ , someone who supposedly “bullies” her, than to you,” he said, making the air quotes. “When are you going to get tired of being voluntary muscle for someone who doesn’t even care about you? She makes you do all the dirty work, and what do you get in return?”

Suzanna’s eyes flashed with rage and hurt and she would have launched herself at Plagg if Claudette hadn’t rushed up and pulled her away, her face flushed.

“Come on, Suz,” Claudette bit out, shooting an angry look their way. “They’re not worth another trip to the vice-principal’s office.”

Suzanna allowed Claudette to lead her away, but Tikki knew it wasn’t over. Everyone knew Suzanna had a crush on Lila, even Lila. But Lila couldn’t even be bothered to give her a straight answer on whether she had any chance, preferring to string her along in the cruelest way. Suzanna wasn’t going to forgive Plagg for poking at that wound… and she was probably going to take it out on Tikki. Even Plagg’s comforting arm around her couldn’t completely drive out the ice in her veins.

\----

Lila wasn’t sure what had happened, but all of a sudden nothing was going her way. First it was that awful stench in the locker room, which just got worse and worse the closer she got to her own locker. By the time she got everything she needed for the day- because she did  _ not _ want to go back to her locker today- she was so nauseous she couldn’t really see straight. She rushed outside as fast as she could, somehow guessing that if she lost it in the locker room itself she would never stop. 

The fresh air outside the locker room hit her with physical force, but it wasn’t enough to counteract the nausea. She did what she had to do, then slumped to the ground feeling weak and shaky. Her court gathered around her but she pushed them all away, nauseous all over again because of her humiliation. Everyone had seen her lose her breakfast.

She was so embarrassed it actually took her until the end of first period to realize the benefits of the situation. Yes, she had embarrassed herself, but from what she could remember, and see by the expressions on everyone’s faces, everyone pitied her for her loss of control instead of laughing at her. Apparently she hadn’t been the only one to feel sick from the smell. For once her victimhood was actually real!  _ I can totally take advantage of this _ , she thought with dawning exhiliration. The only question now was  _ how. _

Of course, that was before her gym period. The coach refused to allow her either to participate in her regular school clothes, or to sit out. But her gym clothes, having sat in the stink for a whole weekend, were so foul she almost retched again just putting them on. But the coach still made her participate, even though all the students who came near her wrinkled their noses and gave her as much space as possible, given the activity. What was worse was that, due to no one wanting to interact with her, the activity took longer than expected, and coach refused to let them go without finishing, which meant Lila didn’t have time to take a shower before her next class. Normally, she would have anyway, and just given some excuse to her next period teacher, but the assistant coach decided to camp out in the gym locker room that day and make sure everyone got to their next class on time.

Every time Lila moved her head, a whiff of that awful smell hit her nose. The smell had permeated her hair, making it impossible to escape. She decided she would go home for lunch and take a shower. It hardly mattered if she missed some of her afternoon classes- she’d done it before, and she was hoping that once the smell was gone, her appetite would come back.

But again, her plans were thwarted. The principal called her into his office during the lunch hour to discuss an event with her since she was class representative. Normally, she would have passed this duty off onto her VP, since she rarely actually did any work aside from coming up with ideas. But this time the principal insisted, so she had to sit and smile and pretend she knew what the heck he was talking about, and try not to notice the repeated expressions of disgust whenever the AC fans kicked on. She did bring up the smell in the locker rooms, ostensibly because she was class representative, but really because she was incensed someone had allowed this to happen in the first place.

The principal told her the janitors were looking into the cause, but they hadn’t found anything yet. Lila then suggested that until the smell was dealt with that the students be allowed to use the lockers in the gym, but the principal shot down that idea since the gym lockers were so small. Lila gritted her teeth, still smiling, and tried not to scream in frustration.  _ Why _ was no one succumbing to her persuasions today?!

By the end of the day Lila was hanging onto her temper by a thread. She actually grimaced when Suzanna tried to kiss her cheek, in no mood to humor the girl’s obsession. She tried to smooth it over, saying she was aware she still stank and didn’t want Suzanna to associate that smell with kissing her, but she could tell Suzanna was hurt by the rejection. Now, it wasn’t necessarily bad for the girl to be hurt, but Lila preferred to be in control of when that happened. It made it much simpler to manipulate her. This time she found herself backtracking too far, implying too much, and the almost manic triumph in Suzanna’s eye as she carefully pressed a kiss to her cheek did not bode well for their future interactions. Lila would hate to lose Suzanna- she was easy to control and fanatical in her devotion. Very useful, in fact. But the same things that made her a useful ally would make her a very bad enemy.

Overall, the whole day was a bust. But hopefully the janitors would find the source of the stink overnight and in the morning it would be gone. And with it, Lila’s sudden bad luck.

  
  



	13. Chapter 13

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Lila takes action against Tikki and Plagg.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Trigger warning: implied sexual assault, descriptions of implied sexual assault
> 
> I am so very sorry.

All conversation in the locker room ceased when Tikki and Plagg walked in on Tuesday morning. That was never a good sign. The smell was gone, thank goodness- although now the locker room reeked of whatever cleaner had been used instead. It was nice not to have to carry all her books around with her- her shoulders were aching from yesterday- but the lack of stench also meant that people were congregating in the locker room again. 

However, something happened then that surprised Tikki. Several people came up and greeted Plagg, nodding politely to her, while she tried to wrap her mind around the fact that  _ people were talking to Plagg _ , and  _ not in a bad way. _

There were no threats, no insults (veiled or not), no promises of retribution for imagined slights. Their expressions remained neutral but Tikki noted a gleam in some of their eyes… as if they wanted to be friendlier but were holding themselves back. There was one guy in particular- Robere, if she’d heard the name right- who was the biggest surprise. Until recently, he’d hung on the fringes of the Lila fan-club, occasionally doing a bit of dirty work just to get noticed, and obviously trying to chat up one of Lila’s staunchest supporters. 

Tikki vaguely recalled hearing some rumors about him a few weeks ago, but she couldn’t remember what they were. And then suddenly he stopped hanging out around Lila or her ‘friends,’ and the girl he’d been interested in looked sad, as well as angry. Tikki didn’t quite trust him, because he  _ had _ been hanging around Lila, after all, but he seemed to be on good terms with Plagg now.

“Are you sure about him?” she did ask, once they’d collected their things and gone back out into the courtyard. The shivery feeling of  _ being watched _ rolled it’s way up and down her spine, but it wasn’t anything new. Still uncomfortable, though.

“I know he used to hang around Lila and her group, but it was mostly because he had a crush on Claudette. And until recently, she was showing signs of returning his interest,” Plagg said, pulling her suddenly out of the way of someone who went running past, and would certainly have crashed into Tikki if Plagg hadn’t acted. Tikki swallowed. This area of the courtyard was a bad place to fall, especially unexpectedly, because there were raised flower beds and benches that could have caused scrapes as well as bruises.

‘What happened?” she asked, even though she suspected the answer.

“What do you think? Lila noticed he was interested in her sycophant, and her sycophant was interested in him, and suddenly there are rumors everywhere that he only gets interested in girls he wants to sleep with, and once he’s gotten what he wants, they never hear from him again.”

Tikki’s mouth twisted in distaste. “Ok, that’s mean. But it could still be true.”

“I actually took the time to talk to some of his ex-girlfriends- he only has two, by the way- and both relationships lasted several months before they both decided they wanted different partners. And,” he said, lowering his voice, “he didn’t sleep with either of them, since everyone involved decided they weren’t ready for that yet.”

Tikki sighed. “Fine. I guess that means you trust him, huh?”

“A bit, yes,” Plagg said, catching hold of someone’s jacket and saving them from a bad fall, which would have also tripped  _ them _ up.

“Easy,” he said, making sure the kid got his feet under him again. “You ok?”

“Uh… yeah,” the kid said, a little dazed. “Sorry. I must have tripped or something.”

“Mmm. Or something,” Plagg agreed, eyes scanning their surroundings. They’d stopped walking because of the kid and Tikki could feel the uptick in tension around them. Trying not to seem nervous, she turned slightly, putting her back to Plagg so she could see behind them. And a good thing, too.

Audry and Martin were suspiciously close to them- more fringe hangers. Audry held a coffee cup whose lid didn’t seem to be fully snapped on. It didn’t take a genius to understand what would have happened had Tikki not seen them. As it was, she stared at the pair until they glanced at each other, shrugged, and walked around her. Tikki wasn’t happy to see Audry toss her a smirk and little wave, though. She’d have to watch out for her for the foreseeable future.

“Maybe you should go home,” Plagg said quietly. His hand on her shoulder was gentle and tentative, but Tikki flinched nonetheless. She tried to stop herself, but the reaction was instinctive, as tense as she now was.

“I’m not going home,” she growled quietly. “This is  _ my _ school, too.”

“We don’t have enough classes together, and I can’t trust the others to do more than watch out for you when they can, yet.”

“I’ll be  _ fine _ ,” Tikki insisted. “They haven’t gotten to me yet, and they won’t today.”

“Cherie,” Plagg said softly, capturing her attention with a hand on her cheek. He loved the french term of endearment and used it often. “I hate seeing you like this- always on edge, watching for the next attack, just…” he sighed. “I know you can take care of yourself, but I hate that everyone seems out to get you. It’s probably my fault anyway, somehow.” His eyes dropped, a suddenly morose and distinctly un-Plagg-like insecurity etched into every line of his face.

“What?” Tikki said, blinking at the sudden change. “Hey. Handsome,” she said, bumping her hip against his. “As much as you like to make trouble, you can’t take the credit for this. I’ve been dealing with these people for years.”

Plagg’s expression slowly solidified into the suave boy she knew. “Ah, but I like to think we’re connected, you and I. It’s entirely possible you’ve been receiving all my bad luck these last few years.”

“Oh yeah? And what did you get from me, then?”

“Your good luck, of course. Why do you think I’ve been so successful with my ‘trouble making’ as you put it?”

Tikki’s mouth quirked up at the corners. “Sounds like I have the worst part of this deal...” she said, pretending to grumble. “Any chance I can get my luck back?”

“I don’t know. I don’t even know how I ended up with it, but I’m pretty sure it’s what led my parents to enroll me in this school instead of the many other choices. I guess we just have to stick together and hope it transfers back somehow,” Plagg said, wrapping an arm around her shoulders and getting them back in motion. 

“I think I can live with that,” Tikki said, good humor restored. But she watched their surroundings all the same.

\----

Lila eyed the two lovebirds from her seat in the back row. She liked the seats in the back, they made her feel in control of the classroom. She could see everything that went on, all the little movements and actions that the teachers often missed, and it came in handy to have that information. 

She wasn’t getting very far with her followers on switching targets from Tikki to Plagg, and it irked her. It was obvious- at least to her- that Plagg was rapidly becoming Tikki’s center. Whenever her ‘friends’ harassed Tikki, Plagg either interfered, or cheered her up afterwards. Just like with Marinette, Lila needed to separate Tikki from what she cared about, and it was increasingly apparent that what she cared about was Plagg. Lila needed to show her that nothing was safe. No one was safe. She needed to make it clear that  _ she _ was the one in control. 

But her tactics had always been to suggest, to lie, to spread rumors. And if her followers weren’t willing to accept her suggestions, didn’t care about her lies, and refused to spread the rumors, there wasn’t much Lila could do. Not without opening herself up to possible censure. She hated getting her own hands dirty. It was uncomfortable, not to mention inefficient. Much better to have someone else do it- only this time, no one was willing to step up.

Lila pondered the problem, fixing a slight frown on her face as she pretended to pay attention to the lesson. She couldn’t get away with borrowing someone else’s notes for long, she did have to pay attention most of the time, but today she wanted to concentrate on the problem of Plagg.

Maybe if she started a rumor that he was the one responsible for that awful stench in the locker room yesterday?

But Suzanna was already convinced Tikki was behind it, all because she’d seen the girl smile when coming out of the locker room in the morning. And Suzanna had her own following- people who were friends with her and looked up to her and wouldn’t change targets without her say-so. So that was out.

Maybe a different angle on the abusive boyfriend lie? She sighed for the loss of her first idea. Accusing Plagg of abuse would be so easy… she knew Tikki had bruises from what her fan-club did to her, and to transfer the blame of that onto her new boyfriend would be  _ so _ delicious. But that required the acceptance of those followers and some of them were oh so proud of what they’d been doing…

But… what if she framed it a different way? Lila narrowed her eyes a little as the plan blossomed in her mind and allowed herself to smile, as though she had just understood the lesson. This new approach might just accomplish all her goals: getting rid of Plagg, intimidating Tikki, and keeping her followers happy. Now… how to go about it so she kept her own saintly image intact...

\----

It was Suzanna who, surprisingly, brought the topic up to Lila when they had a few minutes alone together.

“Listen,” Suzanna said, getting a little too close for Lila’s comfort. But she pasted her smile on and endured it. Suzanna’s stare was a little obsessive, and she needed to know what it was all about.

“I know you’ve been on this kick about Plagg, and him being dangerous and all, yeah?”

Lila immediately let her expression drop. She faked a shudder. “He just… gives me the creeps. I don’t think he’s safe for anyone to date, really.”

Suzanna’s grin turned wicked. “Well, what if we set him up? Make it look like he tried to molest someone? That would get him kicked out, right? And you could feel safe again.”

Lila stared at her, genuinely surprised that Suzanna had come up with the same plan she’d been considering. She thought about how having Suzanna on board solved nearly all of her problems with the plan. Suzanna was in contact with various unsavory people, she had a following of her own that were willing and able to do the dirty work, and she was so devoted to Lila that she was willing to do extremely questionable and even outright criminal things in order to impress her. She realized she’d been staring a bit too long and hastily looked down, feigning uncertainty.

“I-I don’t know, Suz,” she said. “Wouldn’t that make us just as bad? I mean, he hasn’t done anything that we can prove.”

“Yet,” Suzanna said, smirking. “And besides, this way, there will  _ be _ proof!” She laughed at Lila’s manufactured dismay. “Aw, don’t worry about it, sweets,” Suzanna said, kissing her cheek. “I’ll take care of everything.”

It took everything in her not to recoil from the unwanted affection, but Lila made herself smile uncertainly at her. It wasn’t that Suzanna was unattractive. Under different circumstances, Lila thought she might be willing to play along and experiment a little. But Suzanna was inclined to be obsessive, and she was an extremely good asset. If Lila started something with her and then pulled back later on, it could get very ugly very fast, and there would probably be no repairing the relationship, even for one of her formidable persuasive skill. 

As Suzanna left to put her plan into motion, Lila wondered if she ought to make up a fake boyfriend. Someone with status and looks, obviously… someone who would make her look good while also making it almost impossible for anyone to actually meet him. She turned the thought over in her mind and walked to the last class of the day.

\----

Waiting for Suzanna to make her move was both exhilarating and terrifying, Lila discovered. It made her nervous to be out of the loop, because she wouldn’t be able to look ahead and see the flaws and come up with ways to combat them. But she recognized the beauty in her ignorance as well. If questioned, at worst she could admit that Suzanna told her of her plan, but she herself would be exonerated because she hadn’t participated and didn’t know any details. And that was if she needed to tell any truth at all. More likely, she could lie about knowing anything and get away with it.

So it was that screams from the girls bathroom a week later, just at the end of the day when all the students were leaving, caught her as much by surprise as anyone else. Lila joined the rush of students to cluster around the door and, as luck would have it, she was among the first there and got to witness the scene in all it’s wonderfully awful glory.

Tikki lay face-first on the floor, pants shoved down to her knees with her butt in the air. Her panties were askew, as if someone had also tried to yank them down. She moaned and tried to move feebly, but it was obvious she was out of it and probably drugged. Meanwhile, Plagg lay on the floor next to her, knocked out and with his pants also undone. When someone- Lila didn’t see who- tried to turn him over, there was a clear goose egg forming on his right temple near the hairline. 

Lila approvingly noted the position of the sink counter and mentally congratulated the person who had thought to make it look like he either lost his balance or that Tikki tossed him off somehow and he hit his head on the edge of the counter, knocking him out. Then, the next person in the bathroom would discover them and draw the obvious conclusions.

She somewhat less approvingly heard the confused murmurs around her. Some were speculating on whether it was consensual and something happened, or whether they were both drugged, but no one was drawing the obvious conclusion- that this was an attempt at rape gone wrong.

“Oh no, I always knew there was something the matter with him,” Lila said, once again feigning shock and dismay. “I can’t believe he would do something like this to his own girlfriend!” She said it just loud enough to be picked up by the people immediately around her. Almost at once the murmurs turned angry and spiteful. No one was doing much to help either of the two yet, so Lila turned to those behind her and loudly called for the nurse and the principal to be brought. Several people were taking pictures on their phones, and though Lila would have liked a momento of this humiliating and devastating moment in Tikki’s life, she didn’t think it would fit with her persona to take a picture of her own. Maybe she could get a copy from someone else later.

After the ambulance was called and all the interviews over with, Lila walked home with a spring in her step. She hadn’t seen hide nor hair of Suzanna or any of her friends, and though she hoped they were all smart enough to have hidden their tracks, she didn’t feel as though she needed to make sure. After all, if they were caught, nothing could be traced back to Lila except for some mild worrying about Plagg’s intentions.

\----

Tikki woke up in a hospital bed, both parents sitting by her side, and woozy beyond all belief. There was also a kind of ache between her legs, something she wasn’t accustomed to.

“Wha happen…” she mumbled.

At first her mom couldn’t do anything but cry while her dad looked like he wanted to murder someone. Her little sister Janice wasn’t anywhere in sight. When her mom finally calmed down and Tikki began to wake up more, she explained what had happened. Or at least, what  _ appeared _ to have happened. It filled Tikki with horror and fury.

Tikki knew-  _ knew _ \- that Plagg would never drug and try to rape her. The issue of rape was still up for debate. A rape-kit had been done, but it would take a while to get the results and in the meantime a doctor had done a physical exam which suggested that nothing had been done to her. Still. Even though Tikki had no doubt whatsoever that Plagg would never hurt and use  _ anyone _ like that- but especially not  _ her _ \- she felt violated. 

She couldn’t remember much about what must have happened before the attack. Her memory started to get vague after that day’s lunch period. She thought she had gone to classes, but… there was a kind of echo in her head- shouting, along with a few stabs of pain before everything went black. It was frustrating to say the least. There was no evidence of whatever drug had been used in her bloodstream by the time a test was run, so that didn’t help either.

And now her parents were refusing to let her see Plagg and demanding she break up with him. It was understandable, at least from their point of view, but for Tikki it was infuriating. She knew, she just  _ knew _ he hadn’t done this, that he was as much a victim as she was, and that someone was trying to separate them. Probably because Lila had noticed that Tikki was happier with Plagg than without him. Divide and conquer, wasn’t that the phrase? And it was being done to them. And despite anything she could say, it was working.

\----

Plagg came back to consciousness with a blinding headache. At first it was so bad he couldn’t take note of his surroundings. He tried to remember what had happened, but all he could come up with was kissing Tikki before both of them went to their second to last classes of the day. That was it. If it weren’t for the pain, he was sure he could come up with something else, but the pounding and stabbing pains in his brain wouldn’t let him focus.

It was when he tried to bend over and cradle his head in his hands that he noticed he could only move one of them. The other would move a short distance before something around his wrist stopped it. He couldn’t open his eyes without excruciating pain, either, so he was forced to wait until someone came by to explain things.

He could hear the sounds of a busy building around him, but they were muffled and the space felt small, every sound amplified and bouncing off hard surfaces very quickly. The building also smelled old- a combination of dust and mildew and aged wood and plaster that new buildings just didn’t have.

Plagg had no idea just how long it took for someone to open a door, as indicated by the sudden increase in volume of sound- Plagg winced- and come in. There was the scrape of a chair and the rustle of fabric as whoever it was sat down. There were also sounds of a second person moving about, who remained standing. By that time Plagg was feeling the need of a restroom.

“Mr. Eduardo Martinez,” a dry, seemingly uninterested voice spoke. “Son of Julio and Martinique Martinez. Age seventeen, recently moved to France with your family.” The voice paused. “Any comments to make?”

“I don’t know where I am, and I have the headache from hell,” Plagg whispered. “What’s going on?”

“You are in the local police station, and you are being charged with attempted rape. There may be other charges as evidence comes to light, but that’s what it comes down to. Mr. Heinrickson here is your legal counsel. Since you are underage, you’re being charged as a juvenile for now, but with something like this…” the voice trailed off. 

Plagg swallowed, trying to think past the pain. This… was not good.

Over the course of what felt like several hours, he received medical attention- which consisted of low strength pain pills that only served to take the edge off the headache- and was allowed to take care of bodily functions, but he also learned that he wouldn’t be allowed to leave until someone paid bail. 

Mr. Heinrickson outlined what was going to happen from that point forward. None of it sounded like something Plagg wanted to go through. No one answered his questions about who it was he was supposed to have raped. He suspected it was Tikki, but didn’t ask, just in case. It would look better if he really didn’t know. They asked him questions about why, and how he’d gotten the drugs, and why he picked the location he had, but it was all phrased in vague terms. He assumed they wanted him to incriminate himself with details he shouldn’t know if he hadn’t been there. He tried to tell them he couldn’t remember what happened, that he’d never done anything with or involving drugs, and that he must have been attacked and left there himself, but no one seemed to believe him.

It did not bode well.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Again, I am very sorry. I had something else planned, but then my awful brain came up with this, which was worse, but fit the plot better. I promise, they won't be kept apart forever, and Lila will be exposed eventually. Unfortunately, if you can believe it, it will actually get worse before that happens.
> 
> I don't know if it will be next, but I will write a nice and fluffy Adrienette chapter for you soon.


	14. Chapter 14

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Tikki reaches out to Marinette. Plagg's new friends try to help.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> TW: description of assault
> 
> I was going to wait till tomorrow to post this, but I think everyone needs a little ray of hope for these two sooner rather than later.
> 
> Also, there is a bit of cussing toward the end, which I typically don't include, but... it's situationally appropriate.

Marinette was surprised to get a text from Tikki that following Thursday. She’d made plans with Mylene, Rose, and Juleka to go listen to their band on Juleka’s house boat that afternoon before the weather got too much colder, but when she read the message, asking her to come over after school, she quickly decided to bow out.

She was making her apologies to Juleka when Adrien came up behind and squeezed her shoulders in a one-armed hug. Marinette smiled at him, but briefly. Tikki hadn’t contacted her for almost a month now, and for her to do so now out of the blue… it felt like something must be wrong.

“Everything ok?” Adrien asked, walking beside her to the front doors. “Juleka’s band is really good, are you sure you want to miss it?”

“No… I don’t know,” Marinette said, frowning a little and keeping her gaze on the floor. “My friend- my old friend from school- texted me, asking me to come over. She… hasn’t done that in a while. I guess I’m just afraid that something’s wrong.”

“I’m sorry to hear that. I hope it’s nothing serious.”

“Me, too,” Marinette replied, but privately she knew that whatever Tikki had to tell her was probably not a good thing. She took a moment to wave off Adrien and Nino and hug Alya goodbye before texting her parents to let them know where she was going to be, shivering against the bite in the air. The weather people were calling for a deep freeze in the next few days, and were predicting a winter cold enough for the Seine to freeze at least partially. Marinette wasn’t looking forward to that, but it wasn’t like she could change the weather. 

She quickly ran to the metro, glad to get underground and out of the wind.

\----

It was even worse than Marinette had feared. She stared at Tikki, sitting on the bed in her small bedroom, mouth hanging open and completely speechless. Tikki paced restlessly, arms crossed over her chest and frowning heavily.

Marinette caught her elbow and Tikki turned to look at her.

“I’m not going to say it’s alright, or that everything’s going to be fine,” Marinette said quietly. “Because obviously it’s not. But I believe you,” she said firmly, making eye contact. “And if you want, I can give you the number for my therapist- someone who’s also going to believe you, and help you through this.”

Tikki closed her eyes and slumped in on herself. She finally sank down on the bed beside Marinette, hands in her lap. “I just… I  _ know _ he would never do that. Never,” she said, voice betraying the tears she was trying to hold back. “And I know I don’t deserve this, but… thank you so much.” She jumped up to resume pacing. “How are you so  _ calm _ about all this? I can’t sit still at all!”

Marinette smiled sadly. “I’m not surprised at anything Lila does, honestly. If she thought you and Plagg were a threat to her… I’m really not that surprised she did this to you. It’s humiliating and damaging to both your reputations, while her hands get to stay lily-white.” She sighed. “That sounds awful. I’m not ignoring how hurt you are, and it’s not like I don’t sympathize, but I… I can’t work up a righteous rage anymore. Not for Lila. There’s just no point.”

Tikki stared at her, eyes watering. “She ruined my life,” she said simply. “She ruined Plagg’s life.”

Marinette stood and wrapped her arms around her old friend, first friend, and just held her as some of the tears she desperately needed to shed finally came out.

“I know,” she whispered. “I know.”

\----

“And you can’t prove any of this?” Marinette asked, once Tikki had recovered enough to detail what she’d been going through.

“Not according to the principal,” Tikki said, bitterly. “At the hospital they even decided my healing bruises were from Plagg, too, and that I was just trying to cover for him by blaming them on bullies.”

Marinette sighed. It was just the same situation as all the years before. Lila and her cronies were too clever, too able to cover their tracks. 

“Well, if you want my advice,” Marinette said, hesitantly, since Tikki hadn’t reacted well to her previous advice to change schools, “I would take everything you do have: voice recordings, pictures, anything, and document it. Then add to it as you can, as things happen. Definitely document this! Get statements from everyone Lila’s pissed off over the years. I’ll definitely give you everything I have. And then… go to the school board with it. Completely bypass the school administration- you already know they won’t do anything about it.”

Tikki stared at her. “You… have evidence?”

Marinette nodded. “I started last year, when things got so bad. I even took some of it to the principal, but he just treated it like a nuisance report and told me I could have tampered with the recordings and bruised myself.”

Tikki closed her eyes, a pained look on her face. “I am so sorry,” she said. “P-Plagg said… he said that a drowning woman can’t be expected to notice the people around her, but… I didn’t see how you were drowning right beside me until it was too late. We could have helped each other before now.” Her voice dissolved into more tears, and she leaned forward into Marinette’s hug.

Marinette sighed and settled in for a long evening.

\----

Adrien watched Marinette as subtly as he could, concerned at the now near permanent little furrow between her brows. She’d come to school with it the day after that mysterious text from her old friend and it hadn’t left since, even in moments when she appeared to be happy, laughing with the girls about something. Now, almost a week later, he decided to ask her about it.

“Hey, how’s, uh, how is your old friend doing?” He said, while they were gathering their things after class. “I’m sorry I didn’t ask before, but it’s been so busy with midterms coming up…”

Marinette looked at him, startled. “Oh. I forgot I told you about that. Yeah… not too good, as it turns out. It’s… kinda personal to her, and I don’t want to talk about it.”

“Oh,” Adrien said, slinging his messenger bag over his shoulder. He’d been doing pretty well keeping his hands to himself, but that urge to protect still rose up from time to time and right now it was screaming at him, so he kept hold of the strap. Maybe if he changed the subject it would go away.

“Oh, um,” he said, quickly. “I finally got some free time in my schedule! So… still up for that movie night?” His smile was hopeful. Maybe  _ she _ would smile and that little furrow would disappear for a moment.

Her glance at him, all tight lips and straight brows, was more annoyed than anything else. “I guess… I mean, it was a bet, right? Gotta pay up.”

Adrien tried not to visibly wilt. “Right. Sorry. Some other time, then,” he said, before turning and walking away as fast as he could. He knew it was rude, but… now was obviously not the time, and if he stayed, he knew he would ask for more, maybe push too hard and end up pushing her away entirely.

“Wait!” Marinette called.

Adrien slowed to a stop and closed his eyes briefly to steel himself before turning around wearing one of his model smiles. Marinette rushed up to him, portfolio firmly clamped under one arm, backpack bouncing as she caught up.

“I’m sorry,” she said, and her sad smile told him it was sincere. “That was rude of me. Of course, whenever you want to do the movie, that’s fine.” She dragged a grin onto her face, and it was all Adrien could do to keep from wrapping her up all safe in his arms until she felt entirely better. Kissing that little furrow until it disappeared also briefly ran through his brain before he could stop himself.

“I don’t want to keep you from your friend,” Adrien said, taking a deep breath and letting his smile soften into something more real. “If she needs you right now… I know you’d do the same for any of us. Movie night can wait a while longer.”

Marinette’s relieved smile warmed his heart. “Thanks. I’m sorry, I would explain more, but…”

“It’s personal. I get it,” Adrien said. “Let me know if there’s anything I can do to help.”

Marinette’s eyes widened in surprise. “...thanks! But-”

Adrien’s smile twisted. “If you’re going to say that everything will be fine… well, you’re not being very convincing.”

Marinette’s smile faltered. “You… might be right about that. It’s pretty messed up,” she said with a sigh. “But,” she said, taking a deep breath, “I will tell her that you offered to help without even knowing her or knowing any details, and maybe…” she shrugged. “But it’s hard for her to trust people right now.”

“She’s still friends with you,” Adrien said quietly, “Which means she knows that you are trustworthy. So maybe she’ll decide that anyone else you are friends with will also be trustworthy.” His eyes widened and he hurried to add, “I mean, I hope I’m trustworthy! I haven’t… really had the chance to prove that? Not to you, anyway.” He looked down, rubbing the back of his neck, wondering how much more awkward this was going to get.

Marinette chuckled. “Don’t worry, Adrien, I think you are very trustworthy, and if she ever met you, she would too. I’ve got to go now, but… thanks.”

\----

Robere stalked through the halls, furious but impotent. Just when things were beginning to come together,  _ just _ when they were finally gathering allies against Lila and her fan-club…  _ this _ happens. He had no doubt that Plagg was innocent, but he was nobody’s fool. Unless there was incontrovertible  _ proof _ that Plagg was innocent, his reputation was ruined and he wouldn’t be coming back. He’d been asking around, trying to find someone,  _ anyone _ , who had seen what went down, or had any clue who was behind it. So far, nothing. And the longer that went on, the less likely it was that anyone would come forward.

And what they’d done to Tikki… his blood boiled. He couldn’t help equating her with every other girl he knew. How… how could anyone, but especially another girl, ever put someone in that position on purpose? There was no word yet on whether she’d actually been raped, but the appearance of it was bad enough. The fact that they’d drugged her and she couldn’t remember anything was worse. She’d never know for sure what had happened and that was going to be a major blow to her confidence, no matter what happened with Plagg.

He was walking past the open door of a darkened classroom when all of a sudden someone grabbed his arm and pulled him inside. Instinct made him spin away, breaking the grip, and he blinked rapidly, trying to make his eyes adjust quicker.

“Calm down! My… my name’s Fleur,” a quiet, hesitant voice said. “I… maybe I shouldn’t have done this,” it said, getting even quieter and seeming to move away from him.

“Wait,” Robere said. “What’s going on? Why’d you pull me in here if you’re not even going to explain yourself?”

His eyes were starting to get used to the dimness in the classroom. Fleur was a tall girl, with long light-colored hair. She stood with crossed arms and hunched shoulders, a black rectangle he guessed to be her phone clutched in one hand.

She looked down at it for a moment before sighing and activating the screen. She pulled some earbuds out of her pocket and plugged them in before motioning him to follow her to the other end of the classroom, away from the door.

“You need to see this. I’m… I’m not really sure what to do with it. I want to help, but… I don’t know what to do.”

Robere frowned, but accepted the phone as she held it out to him. The screen showed some kind of green surface with a slash of tile flooring near the bottom. There was the white triangle of a video icon in the middle. Robere put one earbud in, wanting to be able to hear anyone else come in, and then pressed play.

The video started with shouts.

“-off me! Get o-” [the shout was cut off, the voice obviously muffled]

“Come on, pin her arms! Get her up against the wall.”

[Sounds of scuffling and muffled thuds, as well as more muffled yells from the first voice. Someone gasped and hissed something unintelligble]

“Open your mouth, bitch. You’re only getting what’s coming to you, so you might as well stop fighting.”

[More muffled thuds and a shout that was cut off with a gag and cough]

The view moved slowly down toward that view of the tiled floor and rotated, until several sets of upside down feet and legs appeared, clustered close to the wall beside the sink counter. Finally, a distorted view of three or four girls struggling with a fifth. Gradually, the fifth’s struggles weakened and then ceased. 

Robere glanced down at the video’s scrollbar. 3 minutes. Whatever drug they’d used worked fast.

On the screen he saw the group let go of the fifth girl, who slid bonelessly down the wall, groaning and feebly twitching.

“How are we gonna do this?”

“It’s supposed to be a rape gone wrong, right?”

“Yeah… we gotta wait till they bring the fucker, but I’m thinking doggy-style?” A harsh laugh. “You know, ‘cause they’re basically animals at this point?”

A chorus of agreement. Minutes passed as the girls shuffled around. Someone’s phone dinged.

“Ok, they’re bringing him. He got hit on the right temple before he went down. So, if we…”

The girls shuffled around a bit. It was frustrating beyond all belief that none of their faces were clearly in view.

Finally, they pulled the drugged girl out into the floor, and before they rolled her over onto her stomach, there was a clear view of Tikki’s face. Robere’s hand clenched around the borrowed phone, even though he’d suspected this from the beginning.

They had to physically lift Tikki’s rear in the air before they could get her knees under her enough to keep it there without them sliding right back down. Robere was spared a view of them pulling Tikki’s pants down because one girl’s body was in the way as she wrestled with the tight jeans. But he could clearly see the way they’d started to tug her panties down when the girl got up and moved away. The door opened with a squeak and two guys came through, supporting the weight of a third between them, an arm over each pair of shoulders and feet dragging. Robere recognized one of Plagg’s favorite shirts. Not that that was surprising, either.

“Great job, guys! Put him here by the sinks. It’s gonna look like he lost his balance and hit his head on the counter.”

The boys murmured agreement and, somewhat surprisingly, carefully lowered Plagg to the floor before undoing and partially pulling his pants down as well. 

“Now remember. We all scram, and we don’t meet up again until tomorrow.”

Everyone left except for one girl, who got something out of her purse. She squirted something into the palm of her hand before vigorously smearing it all over any exposed flesh of both Plagg and Tikki. Then she left, too. There was a brief view of her satisfied smirk before the door closed behind her. A little zing shot up Robere’s spine. He knew that face. That was Audry, one of Suzanna’s band of trouble-makers.

Robere expected the video to end there, but it didn’t. Instead, the view slid back up to the green surface- which Robere now suspected was the door to one of the bathroom stalls. Then the camera view switched, showing the white and scared face of Fleur.

“I… can’t believe that happened. Oh my god. I… I don’t know what to do! Shit! I can’t leave yet- they’re probably watching the door or something. I’ll wait until the bell rings, then I’ll wait a little longer and go out there and scream as loud as I can. I’ll pretend I came in here after classes and found them like that.” A short pause, in which Fleur’s face crumpled and she lifted a hand to her mouth. “Oh god. I can’t-” 

The video stopped.

Robere took a deep, shaken breath, then pulled the earbud out again. “Is this the only copy of this video?”

Hesitantly, Fleur nodded. Robere echoed it. “Ok. I’m going to send it to myself, and a few others I trust. Is that ok?”

Fleur nodded again, some of the tension leaving her face. “I… I thought, maybe.” She shook her head. “I haven’t seen you hanging around with Lila’s group lately… and then you were talking to that guy in the video, and asking around about what happened, and I just thought… maybe you’ll know what to do.”

Robere nodded again. “Yeah. Lila spread some lies about me, and it kinda woke me up to reality. But this…,” he waggled the phone. “This is going to save my friend, so… thank you.” He put a hand on Fleur’s shoulder and squeezed before letting go. “Really. Thank you so much.”

He quickly sent the video to his own phone and then forwarded it to two of the others, along with a message to hide the video behind a password and not to talk about it until they could meet up. Then he programmed his number into Fleur’s phone, and vice versa.

“Listen,” he said, handing it back to her. “I know you’re scared. But we have to take this to the police.”

“But what about the principal?”

Robere snorted. “If you think he’s going to do anything but sit on this until it goes away, you’re dreaming. No, Plagg’s being charged with assault and attempted rape. We need to take this to the police, and they’re probably going to want to talk to you, since you took the video. Now, they’ll probably let you stay anonymous if you want-”

“I do! I want to stay anonymous.”

Robere nodded. Getting known as the girl who bailed out the most hated couple in the school- even if many people suspected the reasons for that hate- would be hard to deal with.

“I… Lila, she… she’s never done anything to me, personally,” Fleur said. “But I’ve heard whispers. And everyone knows to stay away from Suzanna and her gang… it just doesn’t feel right to let them get away with it.”

Robere smiled at her. “Thank you. Seriously, thank you. It took a lot of guts to film that, and even more to try and do something about it. Maybe someday we can make it up to you.”

“... ok,” Fleur said, quietly. “I gotta go now. Get to class, you know.”

  
“Yeah, me too,” Robere said, putting his own phone back in his pocket. Fleur left, just as the bell rang, making them both tardy. Even so, Robere took a moment to celebrate silently before making himself resume the frown he’d had before and leaving the classroom. No sense in giving the game away, and he was  _ supposed _ to be upset at the injustice of it all. But it was hard to suppress a grin when he thought of the evidence now on his phone. Suzanna and her gang were in for a huge surprise.


	15. Chapter 15

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> The detective (who shall remain nameless) deals with a change in his case.

The detective in charge of the Beaulieu case was almost finished entering his notes on the last interview when there was a knock on the door of his small office. The desk sergeant pushed the cracked door open and gestured a teenage boy inside, saying, “This young man says he has something to show you about the Beaulieu case.”

The detective raised his eyebrows but waved him to a chair in front of his desk. There was barely room for the chair or the boy, but he managed to squeeze into the small space.

“Well?” he said. 

Wordlessly, the young man pulled his phone out of his pocket and swiped the screen a few times before handing it over. The detective glanced down to see what was clearly a video. He looked up again, raising one eyebrow.

“Just watch it,” the young man said.

The detective pushed play.

\----

Fleur was doing homework in her room- or at least trying to, though she could barely concentrate on it- when the buzzer rang for their apartment. Her mom was home for once, her shifts at the bank having been switched with a co-worker that week. Fleur closed her eyes and tried to compose herself. She’d been nervous ever since she filmed that encounter, but since giving the video to that guy, her anxiety had ramped up considerably. She hadn’t told her mom about any of it yet. 

She’d been trying to get her mom to let her switch to a different lycee for a while now, but her mom hadn’t been convinced yet. It was part of the reason she’d taken the video in the first place. If her mom could just see what went on there, surely…

Her mom opened the door to her bedroom without knocking- which was uncharacteristic of either of her parents. Fleur looked up.

“Fleur? Care to tell me why there’s a police detective in our living room that wants to speak to you?”

\----

“So you’re saying… he didn’t do it?” Tikki’s mom sounded incredulous. The detective handling Tikki’s case sat on their couch in the late afternoon, ten days after the incident. Tikki hadn’t been back to school yet- her parents were seriously considering forcing a transfer after this latest attack on her.

“There is very compelling video evidence that it was a set-up, yes. I’ve had the video analyzed for tampering, and I’ve talked to the person who originally took the video. It’s not fake, and the student in question isn’t looking to make trouble or to cover anything up as far as we can tell. I’ve got it on my laptop if you’d like to see it.” His eyes flicked over to Tikki. “It is… graphic. And it might be distressing to watch.”

“Anything’s better than not knowing what happened,” Tikki said, firmly. She’d regained a lot of her mental stability over the past few days, secure in her belief that Plagg would never do something like that. And here was evidence suggesting she’d been right- of course she was going to watch it!

The detective put the laptop on the coffee table and opened it, cueing up a video. It had obviously been taken from someone’s phone, and showed what must the bathroom where the attack had taken place.

All in all, Tikki handled watching the video a lot better than her parents. Both of them ended up breaking down, while Tikki remained dry-eyed. After all, it wasn’t like she didn’t know what those girls were capable of when they wanted to be.

“Regrettably, we haven’t been able to positively ID the perpetrators,” the detective said. “Except for the only one to show her face clearly, at the end of the video. The video had showed the attack in progress up until the last girl left the bathroom and the view slid back up to the stall door and then stopped. Now the detective looked at Tikki, who stared back at him challengingly. 

“I told you my boyfriend didn’t do it,” she said.

“Tikki!” her father chided.

“No, she has a point,” the detective said. “We have to follow the evidence where it leads us, though, and until yesterday, all of it pointed to Mr. Martinez. Now, however, we’d really like to get the people who actually committed the crime. Can you tell us anything about the perpetrators? Give us a jumping off point?”

“That last girl- her name is Audry. She hangs out with a girl named Suzanna, who is kind of the leader of that gang. I’d bet you anything Suzanna was behind all of this. She has it out for me?”

“Any particular reason?”

“Do bullies ever need a reason?” Tikki challenged. “If you’re asking if I’ve done anything to make her mad, no, I haven’t. You’ll probably get a different answer from her, though.”

“Why?”

Tikki rolled her eyes. “She’s convinced that I’ve been bullying someone else- which, let me just say, I’ve never done.” She sighed. “Not that I expect you to believe me, because no one ever has, though. Well, except for Plagg. And Marinette.”

The detective had been making notes while Tikki talked. Now he looked up. “Who is Marinette?”

“She is- was- my best friend since elementary school. She and I got bullied a lot and it got so bad that Marinette transferred to a different lycee this year just to get away from it.”

“You never told me that was the reason,” her mom interjected.

“I did, mom, but you always said we were exaggerating things.”

“Ok. And you can’t positively identify any of the others in the video?” the detective said, pulling their attention back to him. He pulled up several still-frames of the best shots of her attackers, some of them blown up enough to be blurry around the edges, showing half-shadowed silhouettes, or distinguishing characteristics of clothing.

Tikki took her time looking at them, but she honestly wasn’t very familiar with Suzanna’s group. She knew Audry, and Martin had been one of the boys to attack Plagg, but she usually used the presence of either of the three of them to determine if she needed to be extra careful instead of getting to know everyone who hung out with them. She reluctantly shook her head. “I’m sorry, but no. I don’t recognize any of them except Audry and this boy,” she said, pointing to one of the two supporting Plagg’s weight between them. “His name is Martin.”

The detective nodded, making another note. “And how can I contact this Marinette?”

Tikki gave him Marinette’s address and the phone number for the bakery. He started packing the laptop away again after that, clearly getting ready to leave.

“Obviously we’ve dropped the charges against Mr. Martinez,” he said, getting up from the couch. “And I’ll let you know as soon as we’re ready to charge anyone else.” He looked at Tikki’s parents. “It’s even possible that this investigation will spur an additional investigation into the school itself. This isn’t the first time I’ve been made aware that bullying is a major problem at this particular lycee during this course of this investigation. It’s come up several times, and I’ll be recommending the local school board look into it.”

And with that, he shook everyone’s hand and left. Tikki sat with her parents in silence for a few minutes, before fixing both of them with a look and stating, “I’m going to go call Plagg.” They didn’t look away, just nodded.

“Before you do that,” her mom spoke up, making Tikki pause on her way to her bedroom, “I want you to know that we were doing the best we could with the information we had. And I’m sorry you both got hurt in the process, but I’m not sorry for doing everything I could to protect you.” 

Tikki turned back to face her, face solemn. “But you didn’t believe me. And now it turns out I was right after all.”

“I know,” her mom had the grace to break eye contact. “And that’s another thing I’m sorry for. But considering the circumstances, can you really blame us? The statistics say that abusers are mostly people you already know, people you already trust. It’s even true in this case, it just turned out to be other people you know instead of your boyfriend.”

“We’ll be apologizing to him and his family,” her dad said, getting to his feet. “But it might be best for you two to find some public places to visit together for a while. There’s bound to be strong feelings on both sides of this and we should let some time pass before you two visit each other at home again.”

Tikki nodded, slowly. “Ok, dad. I’ll let him know.” She wasn’t sure what to say to her mom, so she just left.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Short chapter (at least for me), but... 
> 
> I thought about including Plagg's perspective on the change, but... the more I tried to write it the more I felt like I couldn't do it justice. Obviously there's a whole lot more for them to sort out, but I feel like this is a good point to stop and change the mood.
> 
> Sorry this got so dark. This is probably going to be the last time I include Lila in one of my fics as anything other than a mostly-absent side character. It just gets really dark, really fast with her and... while I like a good angsty story, this wasn't actually supposed to be this angsty.


	16. Chapter 16

“How is Plagg handling it?” Marinette asked. 

Tikki had waited to call her until after school the next day, having been too caught up reconnecting with Plagg the day before, and deciding how they were going to go forward. She was currently lounging on her bed, online schooling done for the day, and she could picture Marinette swinging side to side in her desk chair in that pink attic bedroom she hadn’t seen in person for far too long.

“He’s… angry,” Tikki admitted. “I am, too. This whole thing should never have happened. And if the administration was worth their salaries, it wouldn’t have, because we’d have gone to them with the bullying and it would have been taken care of.”

“ _ Maybe _ ,” Marinette said. “Our school isn’t the only one with a bullying problem, you know. And as much as I hate to admit it, they can’t just expel anyone accused of bullying on the word of the victim. Can you imagine how much damage Lila could have done if that was the case? You and I would have been gone a long time ago. They do need some sort of proof. But,” she said, emphasizing the word, “they  _ are _ guilty for ignoring the proof of their own eyes,  _ and _ all the stuff I brought them last year. I really hope the investigation that detective mentioned gets going.”

“Yeah,” Tikki said. “I think it will. I take it he came by?”

“Yesterday, late evening. I gave him copies of everything I had. He wanted the originals, but…”

“I get it.”

They were silent a moment, thinking back on everything they’d gone through the last couple of years.

“You know,” Tikki said, slowly, “If they did have a rule expelling people accused of bullying, and if Lila had taken advantage of that… it would have gotten us both out a lot sooner, and maybe it wouldn’t have gone so far.”

“Maybe, but it would still have been a stain on our academic records,” Marinette countered. “Plus, you’re assuming she didn’t want to keep us around so she could keep torturing us. Didn’t you tell me she was pissed when I didn’t come back to school this year?”

Tikki sighed. “Yeah, she really was. You’re probably right.”

“She probably would have kept the threat over our heads as just another way to keep us on edge, maybe even use it to blackmail us.” Marinette said. “But that’s enough about her. Are you going to keep doing online school?”

“I don’t know,” Tikki admitted, sitting up for a change of position. “It’s alright for now, but I kind of miss being in classes around other people, you know?”

“Yeah,” Marinette said.

“Is… is it weird that I feel kind of lost without…” Tikki paused to try to find the right words to describe her sense that something was missing. “Like, I don’t miss the bullying. At all. But…”

“I know exactly what you mean,” Marinette said. “I went through the same thing. It’s like, you’re so used to being hyperaware, and now there’s no reason for it, but you still feel like there should be, right?”

“Yeah,” Tikki said, grateful that Marinette understood. She chuckled a little ruefully. “I keep jumping at the slightest thing. But I think mom and dad are finally realizing just how bad it was, since I keep overreacting to stuff.”

“Well, my therapist says that it’s brain chemistry at this point. Basically, we’ve both been in extended fight-or-flight mode for a long time, and it’s going to take more time for our brains to recognize that we’re safe now. I’ve gotten a lot better, but there are still some things that are triggering for me.”

Tikki chewed the inside of her cheek. “I think… I think I should maybe get a therapist, too,” she said slowly. It was something she’d been thinking about ever since Marinette had offered to give her the number for her own.

“I don’t want to push you into something you’re not ready for,” Marinette said after a moment. “But I think so, too. I know mine has really helped me.”

Tikki sighed. “I hate that you’re so careful about what you say around me now. Listen… I’m sorry for pushing you away. I just… couldn’t deal with the fact that you were happy at your new school. And that I could have been there right along with you. I’m sorry.”

“Oh, Tikki…” Marinette said. “I can’t blame you for that. I mean, yeah, I wish you hadn’t… but I also wish I could have found a way to convince you to transfer with me. If anyone knows how hard it is to deal with Lila and her lies one on one, it’s me. You were trying to protect yourself in the only way you could think of.”

“It still wasn’t the right thing to do.”

“We’re young, Tikki. We’re supposed to make mistakes so we can learn from them.”

“So… you forgive me?” Tikki winced right after it came out of her mouth. She sounded so needy, and she really had no right to expect that from Marinette at this point.

“Of course,” Marinette said immediately. “But… please don’t shut me out again?”

Tikki considered a moment before replying. “I won’t promise to tell you everything all the time,” she said. “But, yeah. I won’t shut you out completely anymore.”

“I can live with that,” Marinette said, and Tikki smiled as she felt something inside relax.

“So,” she said, changing both her tone and the topic. “Tell me about the new school. I think I’m ready to hear it now.”

She smiled as Marinette began, hesitantly at first, but quickly devolving into an eager monologue on the new school’s virtues.

\----

Lila sighed. It had been two weeks since the attack on Tikki, and nothing had been heard from either her or Plagg, nor had they been back to school. In a way it was gratifying. Suzanna’s execution of the plot had been pretty close to flawless, and now both of the thorns in Lila’s side were gone. But it would have been  _ better _ if Tikki had returned to school. That way, Lila could have acted all sweet and innocent to her, pretending to sympathize with her and convincing everyone that she just wanted to put the past behind them and perhaps even become friends. It would have been so satisfying to watch her expressions, perhaps goad her into losing her temper, since Tikki was definitely smart enough to know who was really behind the set-up.

No doubt Tikki would have defended Plagg. Yes… she was loyal. Witness her devotion to the pitiful Marinette for so many years. Tikki would have defended Plagg, and Lila could have acted sadly superior, maybe even admit in public that of course Plagg must be innocent… and all in a pitying way which would only convince any onlookers that she was merely humoring Tikki in order to make her feel better.

But now… since Tikki hadn’t returned to school, and the whole investigation was being kept very hush-hush, Lila had no one to scheme against. It was, in a word, boring.

She had the whole school at her feet, some of them quite literally. Or at least, as much of the school as mattered, when it came to authority and power. But her circle of sycophants were almost too enamored of her. And the students who did see through her facade were all apparently too intelligent or just plain scared to risk getting in her crosshairs. The situation should have been immensely satisfying. Lila had everything she’d ever wanted. But the fact was… she wasn’t happy. Nothing gave her as much satisfaction as pulling the wool over people’s eyes but honestly, if no one else was there to see and understand, and yet be unable to stop her… what was the point?

Perhaps it was her preoccupation with her current state of disappointed boredom that made her overlook the fact that Suzanna hadn’t been to school in days. That, in fact, most of Suzanna’s gang were also absent. But then, Suzanna had told her that she’d have to lay low for a while after the attack, just in case. So when she did notice, Lila didn’t think much of it. She was too busy trying to figure out why Robere was- not smug, surely not- all of a sudden. She knew Claudette still harbored feelings for the boy. Part of Lila wanted to relent and let her have him- after all, Claudette was one of her strongest supporters, and people needed to be rewarded now and again- but after tarnishing his name herself, she couldn’t back down now.

When she noticed that her teachers seemed to be a little more on edge lately, she brushed it aside. It couldn’t have anything to do with her, after all. She’d started spreading more insidious rumors about Robere, but the infuriating boy refused to glower and fume. Just the other day she’d literally watched someone walk straight up to him and scream in his face about how conniving and duplicitous he was… and all he’d done was to look at  _ her _ , at  _ Lila _ , and  _ smirk _ . As if it didn’t bother him at all. As if… as if he knew something she didn’t. 

It wasn’t possible, of course. Lila was too keyed into the lifeblood of gossip in the school- she’d have heard something long before if Robere was planning something against her. 

And then came the announcement. The principal called an assembly one morning, interrupting all their classes, to tell them that the school was under investigation. He didn’t say what for, but Lila had a sinking feeling she already knew why. But why now? What had changed? The school board had always seemed happy with the way the school was run, and if there was anything Lila  _ didn’t _ want, it was a change in administration. However bored she might be with her current lack of satisfying targets, she had the teachers here wrapped up all nice and neatly, and she wouldn’t be able to get away with much for a long time if the school board was going to poke its nose where it where it had never bothered to before. If they were going to start actually doing their jobs, it would certainly be very inconvenient for her. Hopefully, whatever it was really about- and Lila reminded herself that she had covered her tracks very well with every step she’d taken against Tikki and Plagg- would resolve itself soon, and life could get back to normal. 

In the meantime, she was working on throwing out subtle hints that she was seeing someone just to see what the reaction was. What could she say? It was a distraction from her boredom, and her court always went wild whenever they suspected a romance between their golden girl and anyone else. She even had someone in mind- a perfect candidate from her point of view. A model, which meant automatically good looking, and the son of a well-known fashion designer- the face of his company, in fact. His face and body were regularly plastered all over Paris, and there were enough interviews and exclusives floating around that she didn’t have to do much digging to fake actually knowing him. Between building up her fake relationship, further blackening Robere’s good name, and worrying about the investigation and midterms, Lila had more than enough to occupy her mind, and no one ever brought up the missing people in their group.

But Suzanna never came back to school.

\----

After Tikki called and told her about the video and everything was in the detective’s hands, life for Marinette got a whole lot sweeter. She chalked it up to getting Tikki back in her life, honestly. Her worries over Tikki pulling away and still being stuck in the old lycee were gone, and she was now free to fully enjoy herself. She’d met Plagg at a memorable dinner wherein he’d managed to both charm her and convince her that Tikki was the only woman for him, and that he was perfect for Tikki. And her new school friends were quickly becoming more family than anything else. 

Marinette spent hours each week baking their favorite treats, and the study sessions Adrien had first proposed were an almost daily occurrence with midterms just around the corner. All of their teachers were becoming unsympathetic task-masters, piling on the homework- but thanks to the library setting and the plethora of people to choose from, everyone found someone else who knew more about their weakest subjects than they did.

She was also working hard at her midterm art projects. She  _ might _ be regretting that she had three now, at the end of the semester, when it would have been so much easier to write an essay, or take a multiple-choice test instead of having to prepare and present three different art projects in such a short space of time. It was doubly aggravating since she knew Adrien was still waiting for that movie night, and she was finally at a point where she felt comfortable inviting her friends into her home on occasion, yet didn’t feel like she had the time for either. 

She’d convinced her parents to let her have a party during the break, and handed out invitations. Thankfully, most of her friends accepted, even Kagami. But every time she looked at Adrien, with those soft, sweet eyes of his, she felt guilty for still not giving the okay for the movie night.

Finally, she felt she had to say something. So the week before midterms, she pulled him aside at lunch and confessed that things were just too hectic at the moment, but suggested that a movie night during the holidays was a good plan. He’d just smiled sweetly and said that was fine, filling her with even more guilt. Marinette couldn’t deny it anymore- she liked him, and it wasn’t just because of him being Chat Noir anymore, either. But she still couldn’t reconcile it with her conscience to encourage anything between them, since she still felt it would be cheating. And then he’d look at her in  _ that _ way, and she’d reconsider all over again. 

All in all, despite the pressure, life was going pretty great for Marinette. Which, honestly, was just an open invitation for something to come along and mess with the balance again.

Marinette woke up the morning before midterms to find that the investigation into her old lycee had commenced, been in progress, and ended, all without her knowledge. And the ruling of the school board was that the school would close while all the teachers and admin were investigated for their level of guilt in the rampant bullying which had occurred on campus, and while replacements were found for them. To say that it was a shock was an understatement. As much as she’d loathed the old school, it had been a staple in her life for so long that it’s closing was a blow to her equilibrium.

Marinette almost missed her train because she was too busy listening to the news to watch the time. She continued watching and reading about it on her phone on the train, so by the time she got to school she was caught up with unfolding events.

Apparently, the school board had taken the accusations of assault very seriously, especially when that video Tikki had told her about had been shown to them. A shortened, edited version of it had been released to the public, and while all possible identifying features had been blurred out, it was still horrifying to watch. She shuddered, thinking about how Tikki was going to handle it. Watching it in the privacy of her own home with just her parents and the detective investigating her case was one thing. Having the video go public and, probably, viral, was another.

Without really pausing to consider it, she called Tikki, awkwardly juggling her sketchbook and the two plastic bags that held her completed mid-term art-projects. Tikki picked up on the third ring- a clear indication she was preoccupied.

“Hey,” Marinette said. “I’ve been watching the news this morning. You ok?” she asked. “I mean, they did  _ ask _ you about releasing the video, right?”

It didn’t even occur to Marinette that she was having this conversation in public, in front of a busy school, while approaching the people she’d grown closest to in her time there. She listened to Tikki’s response and frowned. 

“I’m still worried about you,” she insisted. “Promise me you’ll stay in today. … Maybe Plagg could come over? … oh, right. I guess that will take a little longer to blow over. Maybe you could go over to his place instead. … Ok, if you’re sure… Well, I’m at school now, so I’ll talk to you later. Bye, Tikki.”

Marinette ended the call and put her phone in her pocket, looking up to see three faces with identical expressions of shock. 

“... what?” she asked. 

Alya tackle-hugged her. “Girl,” she choked out. “Even with what you told us before, I had no idea it was  _ that _ bad.”

Realization dawned on Marinette. She felt her expression fall into that blank look that had been so natural to her only a year ago that she’d literally spent time relearning how to smile spontaneously over the summer. Her grip on her projects and portfolio loosened, and they fell to the pavement. Dimly, she realized she was dissociating again. She knew she should probably make an effort not to, but… sounds and images began to slip away from her, and finally, thoughts.

…

… 

… “- inette! MARINETTE!”

Marinette blinked. Alya came into focus, her shouts dopplering into her ears. She gasped and immediately said, “Sorry. Um. What were we talking about?”

Nino looked concerned, Adrien… Marinette couldn’t tell exactly what he was feeling by expression alone, although there was definitely some anger there, and Alya looked… desperate? Marinette cast her mind back to what she’d been doing before getting to school. She blinked again and looked around, experiencing a moment of panic when she realized her portfolio wasn’t firmly clamped under her arm. 

She began looking wildly around for it, only to spot it under  _ Adrien’s _ arm. To his credit, he immediately saw where she was looking and held it out to her without further ado. Then, once she had it back, he also handed her the plastic bags full of 20% of her grades in those classes. She managed a slightly wavering grin at him in thanks, thrown even more off balance by seeing her portfolio in someone else’s hands- even if those hands were Adrien’s.

“-taking you to the nurse!” Alya was saying. Marinette frowned.

“But I’m fine,” she stated. She looked around, seeing the disbelief in their faces. Swallowing, she tried to reassure them. She  _ had  _ to reassure them. “Really, I’m fine.” 

“Dude, you really aren’t,” Nino spoke up softly for the first time. At least, the first time Marinette could remember that morning. “The late bell rang two minutes ago, and you didn’t even notice. You’ve just been standing there, staring off into space.”

Her pulse quickened.  _ What _ had they been talking about? She frantically tried to remember her morning. She got up, got ready for school, had breakfast… wait, the news was on. What was on the news? Oh right, the video and the closing of the old lycee. She’d called Tikki…

Marinette’s thoughts froze on that. She’d called Tikki. In front of her new school building. In front of her friends. Her friends who didn’t know who Tikki was, didn’t know Tikki was the girl in the video, didn’t know that was  _ her _ old lycee… until Marinette had unthinkingly told them.

  
Her portfolio and bags crashed to the ground again, but that hardly mattered. It didn’t matter that Adrien jumped forward to catch her as her knees buckled. It didn’t matter that he pulled her so close against him that she could hear his heartbeat. It didn’t matter that he was murmuring soothing things in her ear. It didn’t matter because now...  _ they knew. _

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Why is Marinette so afraid of her new friends knowing much at all about her past?
> 
> I'm going into that in the next chapter, so don't worry, it won't remain a mystery for long.
> 
> Edit to add: I just noticed I've surpassed 50k again... yay, another nano-length novel! And as usual, there is still *so much left to write.* Brevity is my weakness, y'all.


	17. Chapter 17

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Marinette spirals, Adrien and Alya are protective, and Lila plots.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Trigger warning: mention of suicide attempt, non-graphic

Marinette had been so careful never to name her old lycee, or give too detailed a description of it, or even talk about the people there by name. Because the last thing she wanted was for everyone to  _ know _ just how bad it was. As long as it was a vague case of bullying, they could still (hopefully) respect her. But once they knew how… how  _ shattered _ she’d been such a short time ago… 

She could see it all unfolding in her mind’s eye. First they would be horrified. Then, things would turn awkward since they had no frame of reference for how to deal with something like that. They’d start to pull away, leaving her out of events and parties, “forgetting” to invite her along to lunches and dinners… she could probably kiss that movie night at Adrien’s house goodbye right now. He wouldn’t want to burden himself with someone so broken. 

Marinette couldn’t even comfort herself with the thought that she’d told Adrien’s alias, Chat Noir, a lot of what had happened to her. She hadn’t told him  _ everything. _ She hadn’t told him the worst bits. So of course, Adrien didn’t know either. And now that he did… he’d never look at her. Not like that. Not even later, when Marinette was a famous designer in her own right. 

Marinette had come to terms with the fact that no one would want to be with an emotional cripple when she’d first started going to therapy. She was so convinced of it Dr. Fu didn’t even know about her belief in her sure-to-be-dismal love life because in her mind it was a foregone conclusion, so what was the point in talking about it? As long as she didn’t think about it, that particular depressing thought couldn’t hurt her. At least until the evidence of it started showing up in her life.

But now that she had friends, she… she couldn’t bear the thought of losing them. She couldn’t bear the knowledge that it would be  _ her _ fault this time, instead of Lila’s. Because she hadn’t been strong enough. Hadn’t been tough enough to endure. Couldn’t handle the pressure. Because... she was weak. And if there was one thing dealing with Lila had taught her, it was that everyone abandoned the weak. 

\----

Adrien focused on the limp girl in his arms instead of trying to untangle the confusing emotions raging through him. Part of him wanted to break out the torches and pitchforks and go hunting the people responsible for bringing Marinette to this collapse. Part of him wanted nothing more than to continue cradling her, whispering reassurances even he wasn’t really listening to. Most of him was confused as to why she’d collapsed in the first place. Yes, it was a shock to find out that not only did she know the poor girl in the assault video, but apparently had attended that very same school where it happened, but… shouldn’t the news that the school was closing while the problem was finally dealt with make her happy? Her reactions didn’t make any sense, and Adrien dimly felt that there was obviously more going on than was apparent.

The first freak-out had been bad enough, when she’d stopped responding to anything or anybody. But at least then she’d remained on her own two feet. This… this was worse. Worse even than her panic attack earlier in the year. At least then he’d been able to do something for her, and she’d been able to respond. But now… it didn’t matter what he said, or how he tried to move her around, she just flopped limply, eyes half-lidded, not even making any sounds.

And it was cold. They were still outside the school building and the pavement beneath them held the chill of winter. Their coats did nothing for their legs, and Marinette had chosen to wear a skirt with leggings today- hardly ideal for lying on cold cement.

Adrien pulled out of his own turmoil enough to look up. Nino was standing around looking both uncomfortable and uncertain, and Alya was… on the phone? Taking a deep breath, Adrien said, “Help me get her inside, Nino. Alya’s right, she needs to go to the nurse’s office, and it’s way too cold out here.”

Nino’s hesitation dissolved into action, and Adrien could have sworn he looked relieved as he dropped his backpack and squatted by Marinette’s legs. Adrien wiggled awkwardly, trying not to jostle Marinette too much as he maneuvered into a squat himself. 

“Lift on three, ok?”

Nino nodded. Adrien counted and they lifted. Marinette was light, being so short and compact, and it didn’t take them long to carry her inside. Alya, still on the phone but paying attention, held the doors open for them, then went back outside to gather Marinette’s abandoned belongings and Nino’s backpack.

Adrien and Nino were walking carefully down to the administration offices when Marinette began stirring. She thrashed weakly but insistently, and Nino dropped her legs while Adrien supported her until she could find her feet again.

“Marinette?” he asked, trying to find something, anything to say, but coming up blank. How do you ask someone if they’re ok when they literally collapsed right in front of you?

“Y-yeah… I’m… I’ll be okay,” she said slowly. She wouldn’t look at either of them. Even so, Adrien felt relieved. She seemed more dazed than before, but at least she was responding again. And then he parsed what she’d said. She  _ would be _ okay, which meant she wasn’t right now, so… this time he didn’t resist the urge to hug her tightly. Maybe it was the wrong move, maybe he should have given her space, but she didn’t flinch away like she had during her panic attack, and it was definitely what  _ he _ needed at the moment. He blinked back tears. He had no idea what was going on, but if anyone had a reason to cry, it was Marinette, not him. After what felt like an eternity, she relaxed, her arms coming up to hug him back. 

Adrien didn’t let go until he felt her pull back slightly. Adrien reluctantly let her go, but it was clear the hug had helped, at least a little. She wasn’t blank-faced anymore, wearing a small smile instead, and she could meet their eyes, if only briefly.

Alya caught up with them, loaded down with backpacks and bags and Marinette’s portfolio. Adrien realized with a start that a lot less time had passed than he thought.

“Oh thank god,” Alya said, unceremoniously dropping everything on a convenient bench and throwing her arms around Marinette. 

“I’m sorry,” Marinette said softly, her expression falling again. 

“Stop that,” Alya said, almost harshly. “None of this is your fault, ok? Look at me!” She pulled back and Marinette reluctantly met her eyes. “We are  _ not _ going to abandon you. We are your friends, and we  _ care _ about you! You are  _ not _ a burden! So stop thinking you are!”

And then, finally, the tears came, though Marinette clearly tried to hold them back. The two girls stood there in the hallway, clinging to each other and sobbing, and it didn’t take much of that for Adrien to join them, pulling Nino along into a group hug.

Clearly Alya had been talking to someone who knew what was going on, and while Adrien desperately wanted to know himself, this was not the time. They stood there until both girls’ sobs subsided into sniffles, until someone, maybe a teacher’s aid or office worker, Adrien wasn’t sure which, came along and asked what they were doing there instead of being in class. 

Adrien quickly explained that Marinette had had a bad morning and that they were taking her to see the counselor. The person-with-ambiguous-job-description sympathized, but also told them to move along and then left them to it.

\----

While Adrien carefully held Marinette up off the cold pavement, Alya’s brain jumped into gear. The first time Marinette spaced out had been weird and concerning, but this… this required action. She darted forward and took Marinette’s phone out of her coat pocket. Close enough to hear what Adrien was saying to her, Alya shot him a pitying look which he completely missed, and stood back up, quickly activating and unlocking Marinette’s phone by the simple expedient of breathing on it to reveal the unlock pattern. Considering how Marinette valued her privacy, she would have to talk to her later about using a password or a fingerprint to lock her phone instead, but that would wait until later.

Alya scrolled through Marinette’s contacts, slightly worried that there were so few. Just a few names other than those of their class. She finally selected Sabine Cheng as the most likely to be Marinette’s mother- there was no thumbnail picture for some reason- and called that number.

It rang and rang, but she didn’t pick up. Alya tried Tom Dupain with the same result. Then she nearly broke Marinette’s phone by unthinkingly trying to slap herself when she remembered that Marinette’s parents ran a bakery and were probably busy with the morning rush. There was no contact number for the bakery itself, but Alya looked it up online and called  _ that _ number.

“Tom and Sabine’s Patisserie, this is Tom, how can I help you today?” a cheerfully booming masculine voice answered after only two rings.

“Mr. Dupain? This is Alya, Marinette’s friend? Listen, she’s had… some kind of collapse. I don’t know why, but she’s not responding, and I think you should come get her.”

The change was instant. “Oh no! I’ll get Sabine. I’m on my way!”

There was the sound of a receiver being put down with yelling in the background. After no more than a minute, the receiver was picked back up. 

“This is Sabine, who is this?”

“Alya Cesaire. I’m friends with Marinette.”

“Alya, yes. She talks about you a lot. Now, why don’t you tell me what happened?”

Alya went through it, though it wasn’t much. That Marinette had been on the phone with someone when she arrived at school, how all of them had realized Marinette had been talking to the girl who must have been the one in the video that had been released (Alya’s voice wavered at that part despite her best efforts) and how Marinette had then spaced out a for a little bit before coming back to herself. Only to then collapse again, this time literally, after trying to convince them that she was fine.

“Oh dear. I was worried the news about the school closing would hit her hard, but she wouldn’t stay home no matter what I said.” Sabine sighed. “Alright. She should come out of it on her own after a few minutes, and when she does she’ll probably try to deny that anything is wrong. Don’t let her. Tell her that it’s not her fault, and that you care about her, and, most importantly, that you don’t think she’s a burden.”

“O-okay,” Alya said hesitantly. She rushed to hold the door open for Adrien and Nino, who had picked up Marinette between the two of them to carry her inside.

“I know this is scary for you, but honestly, these fits don’t last long. It’s not usually this bad, but she has done this before when she’s been off-balance and something unexpected happens. And with the stress of midterms, I think this was just bad timing. But you did the exact right thing in calling us.”

“Okay,” Alya said again. “Um, Adrien and Nino got her inside the school, and I should go get the backpacks and the stuff she dropped. Um… that video that was released,” Alya asked in a small voice. “Did that ever happen to Marinette?” She’d known about the bullying, but… she couldn’t imagine dealing with that level of abuse day after day.

Sabine sighed again. “I wish I could tell you no and be sure of it. With the suicide attempt… but there was never any indication that she’d been taken advantage of like that. So I don’t think so, but she hardly talks about any of it. Now, Tom should be there in a few minutes, so just try to keep her calm until he gets there, okay?”

Alya nearly dropped the phone.  _ Suicide attempt?! _ Nothing, absolutely nothing in any of the times she’d spent with Marinette had indicated that she was likely to try something like that. 

_ But _ , she thought,  _ you’ve only known her since September. And she’s been in therapy since last spring. It must have helped her a lot to get her from that point to where she is now in so short a time. _

Alya shook her head and resolutely headed back outside. Whatever had happened, if Marinette wanted to tell her about it, she would. Her mom probably thought she already knew, or maybe it had slipped out… she’d pretend she didn’t know for Marinette’s sake, at least until she could ask about it without potentially sending her into another spiral.

“Okay, thanks Mrs. Cheng,” Alya said. 

“ _ Thank you... _ for being a good friend to my daughter,” Sabine returned, and Alya could hear the emotion in her voice. 

Alya ended the call, shoved Marinette’s phone in her back pocket and quickly gathered all the bags and backpacks, awkwardly grabbing the portfolio last of all. She winced, seeing the bright pink fabric with a few smears of dirt. Marinette almost never put it down and never on the floor when she did. But she couldn’t do anything about that now, and there were more important things. She trudged back inside, having only a little trouble with the door. When she got back into the warm hallway, she had to pause and wait for her glasses to clear. But when she could see again, she saw Marinette stepping back from a hug with Adrien, while Nino stood awkwardly beside them. 

Her heart filled with relief to see Marinette up and alert and she rushed toward them, dropping everything on a convenient bench so she could both relieve her feelings and follow instructions by throwing her arms around Marinette and telling her how much she meant to them. The impromptu tear-fest was sorely needed, as far as she was concerned. It had been a wildly emotional morning.

\----

Lila stiffened her back and straightened her shoulders as she marched into school. The news that the school would be closed had hit that morning, but everyone had gotten a letter over the weekend. The letter went into more detail than the news report, and stated that all the students currently attending would be temporarily transferred to other schools. And  _ that _ process would be randomized, since public transportation made a student’s residence the next best thing to a moot point. Lila was livid. And, if she was honest with herself, just a little scared.

They were going to close  _ her _ school. They were going to poke and prod and pry, and chances were that some things that were not too complementary to one Lila Rossi would come to light. People only stayed loyal for so long before breaking- one lesson Lila had learned early in her life and decided never to forget. She wasn’t a fool, and she was expecting to feel the heat a little. But she also wasn’t helpless.

The news anchors had said the school was closing while the board ran a thorough investigation into what they had called “rampant bullying.” Well… Lila knew exactly what they were talking about, since she had encouraged and subtly directed most of that bullying. However, there was no reason she couldn’t try to throw sand in their eyes. 

Obviously she would have to remind people that  _ Tikki _ was the big bully at school, and Plagg had been in on it, too. That video was pretty damning- and oh, how it  _ infuriated _ her that Suzanna’s stooges hadn’t bothered to check if the bathroom was  _ empty _ before attacking Tikki! But if Lila framed it right, it would start to look like students who’d been pushed too far taking revenge on their bullies instead of a deliberate frame-up of Plagg for sexual assault. And, connected to that, there was one other person she could pass the blame to.

It was time to drag Marinette Dupain-Cheng’s name back into people’s consciousness. It really was too bad she hadn’t come back to school that year, but that hardly mattered. All Lila really needed to do was convey the impression that most of the bullying took place at Marinette’s instigation, and that the ones doing the bullying this year had simply been acting out of habit even though Marinette was no longer around. That would put one Lila Rossi straight back in the “victim” category, which would get her free and clear of the investigation. 

She had a plan, and she put it into action. However, it was the day before midterms, which meant that, while the school was quietly buzzing about the scandal, most of the students were focused on trying to pass their exams instead of gossip. Doubly so, since they’d all be in different schools after the winter break. That circumstance made it hard to really get their attention, even those of Lila’s circle. Most of them seemed withdrawn, and Lila found more than one side-long look being cast her way.

She asked Claudette about it at lunch.

“Um,” she started, putting on her nervous demeanor, one she used when she wanted to play up her victim-hood, not her noble-endurance-of-injustice. “Claudette, do… do you know why everyone’s looking at me funny today? I mean, not that they can’t look at me, just… it feels odd.”

Claudette regarded her thoughtfully. “Well… it’s pretty obvious from that video that Suzanna and her lot did that to Tikki and Plagg. And while yes, they did bully you, most of us don’t think they deserved that. Also,” here Claudette looked away, “some people are saying that Suzanna must have done it for  _ you _ . You know, because she likes you. So now they’re wondering if… maybe you egged her on a bit.”

Lila did her best impression of shock. “What? But… you know I would  _ never _ ask anyone to do anything like that! I’ve always said that I would never wish harm on anyone- even my worst enemies! You  _ know _ that!” It was true, too. Lila knew the value of reverse psychology and noble-endurance had often gotten her the results she’d wanted, especially when combined with victim-hood.

Claudette smiled, but there was pity behind it. “I know. It’s really not fair. But maybe you should have told Suzanna that you weren’t interested at the beginning of the year. I know,” she added, holding up her hands when Lila was about to interrupt. “You didn’t want to hurt her feelings or ruin your friendship, but… well we all know Suzanna can get a little obsessive, and now it’s gotten her into a lot of trouble. And I can’t help thinking that maybe she got wind of this model-boyfriend of yours and that pushed her over the edge. You did start talking about him right after all this happened, and she might have seen you two together before you became ‘official.’ You really should have told her you weren’t interested before you started dating someone else.”

Lila tried as hard as she could, but she just couldn’t force any real tears to her eyes, so she resorted to burying her face in her hands and dry-sobbing. “I meant to! It just all happened so  _ fast _ , and Adrien was so insistent we start dating immediately because he wanted to protect me, and I just… got swept away by my feelings! I didn’t think. You’re right- I’ve ruined everything! Poor Suzanna!” 

Fortunately, her credit was still high enough with Claudette that she bought the lie and started reassuring her that she hadn’t ruined quite everything and that things would work out. Lila smiled behind her screening hands. She slowly started delicately hinting that if  _ Marinette _ hadn’t been so jealous and awful previously, then  _ Tikki _ wouldn’t have continued bullying her that year, Plagg wouldn’t have gotten pulled into it, and then  _ Suzanna _ wouldn’t have had anyone to target because there wouldn’t have been a bullying problem in the first place.

A cautious look at her friend wasn’t as reassuring as she’d hoped it would be. Claudette was listening, but this time, instead of rapt attention or sympathetic agreement, Claudette seemed to be listening with a considering air. As if she wasn’t quite convinced of Lila’s theories. It was… unsettling. 

Lila suddenly remembered that she would shortly be without her coterie of followers, or, at the most, have perhaps one or two at the same school with her. That thought actually sent a chill down her spine. She relied on their unshakable belief in her to influence everyone else in the school, teachers included. She had no doubt she could eventually make the new school her own, just as she had with this one, but… it was going to be a lot of work. And given the temporary nature of the transfer, it might not be worth it, even if it lasted the whole semester. 

  
In fact, she almost hoped that  _ none _ of her ‘friends’ would follow her to the new school, because while they could back up her stories in some cases, they would also expect her to act the same as always and Lila knew she wouldn’t be able to- not without being caught. She would have to be very careful at the new school. Very careful indeed. 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I want to make clear that Marinette has been in therapy and is getting better. This spiral of hers is nothing more than old, destructive thoughts she hasn't quite purged making a comeback due to her being emotionally off-balance. When someone gets so low as to attempt suicide, healing is necessarily slow.
> 
> If you are having suicidal thoughts, please please talk to someone. You have people who care about you, your brain is lying to you if you think you don't.


	18. Chapter 18

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Friends are smart. Marinette finds ways to cope. Adrien drowns a little more.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I have tweaked and edited and tweaked and edited again... you get what you get and you don't throw a fit. ;)
> 
> (Seriously though, if I did miss a typo here or there, please just overlook it)

“I don’t want to go home, Papa,” Marinette protested, sitting on a cot in the nurse’s office. “It’s the day before finals, and I need to get all the studying in that I can!”

Adrien, Alya, and a very uncomfortable Nino stood by while Marinette argued with her giant of a father. Seriously, Adrien was very intimidated by the broad shoulders and back of a man who’d grown up pounding bread dough into submission on a daily basis. He’d only seen him once before, and that day he didn’t seem nearly as huge in his natural habitat of the bakery. He could probably go up against the Gorilla and have an even chance, assuming he knew anything about fighting at all.

“Marinette,” Tom Dupain said with a sigh and gentle-but-firm tone, “You couldn’t even handle walking into the school building today. What are you going to do when people start talking about the video in between classes? How are you going to answer when people inevitably start asking questions?”

Marinette paled again. Adrien’s heart went out to her, but he held himself back, hands fisting in the lining of his pockets. She was trying so hard to be strong, but he agreed with her father. It would be better for her to go home today to process the information and try to find a way to deal with it. He still didn’t know why the news of the school closing hit her so hard, but that wasn’t really important. What was important was that it had.

“Alya and I can get you the updated study guides,” Adrien heard himself offer. “We’ll even come by after school and go over them with you to make sure you understand everything.”

“But I still have to turn in the art projects…” Marinette began, trailing off as she looked around her friend group.

“Do you have to do that in person?” Nino asked diffidently. It was the first time he’d spoken up, and Adrien was glad. It made him feel more engaged and less like a bystander. “I mean… we could probably take them to the teachers, or maybe you could go around and drop them off yourself before you go home?”

Marinette sighed, her shoulders slumping, and Adrien echoed it unconsciously, relaxing for the first time since her first freak-out. She was going to be reasonable.

“Alright,” she said, finally. “I suppose… I probably wouldn’t be able to concentrate very well anyway.”

Her dad put a hand on her shoulder and nodded. “Good. I know it’s hard, sweetie, and I know you’re trying. It’s ok to not be ok sometimes. No one here is going to think you’re slacking or anything like that. Besides, I think we both know you’ll do much better on your finals tomorrow if you give yourself some time now.”

Marinette nodded reluctantly, but her face still advertised her mixed feelings. She hopped down off the cot and let Alya hand her her backpack before giving her a hug. Alya held on a little longer than normal, and Adrien frowned at the pain on her face. He was going to have to find out what that was about. What this whole morning had been about. 

“What do you want me to tell everyone?” Alya asked.

“Nothing. Please, just… tell them I’m sick,” Marinette said. She sounded a lot better, but there was still tension in her tone of voice. 

“Are you sure?” Alya pressed.

“Yes.”

Alya sighed, but nodded. “Okay. We’ll see you after school, then.”

Marinette turned to Adrien then and surprised him by actually initiating a hug. He didn’t complain at all, just wrapped his arms around her. Hugging Marinette always felt  _ right _ in a way no other hugs did, but this was different. This felt like she was holding onto him for dear life. How could he do anything but settle into a rock-solid stance and hold her?

“You’ll be ok,” he said in a low voice. “You’re stronger than you think, and we’ll help you. We won’t abandon you, I promise- no matter what.”

To his surprise, Marinette briefly hugged him tighter before letting go and stepping aside to hug Nino, who started in shock. Adrien was himself surprised. Marinette typically wasn’t touchy with anyone and almost never with guys, so this was definitely a different turn of events. However, to do him credit, Nino recovered quickly and carefully hugged her back. He offered her an encouraging smile when she released him and Marinette actually managed to smile back.

Adrien flicked a glance toward her father, who was actually tearing up watching this all play out. Clearly, he was more than happy to see his daughter so open and friendly with them all.

“Ok, I guess I better run by the art rooms before we leave, Papa,” Marinette said, turning to Tom.

“Sure, honey,” he replied, “I’ll get your backpack and portfolio ok? You worry about those projects of yours.”

They left and Alya, Nino, and Adrien were left alone.

“I guess we better get to class ourselves if we want to be able to give Marinette any extra review material,” Adrien said, reluctantly. 

\----

The day passed unbearably slowly. Alya was having a hard time keeping her information to herself. It didn’t make any sense to her  _ not _ to tell people, or at least the majority of their friends, that the school that was closing used to be Marinette’s school. Especially since, as news continued to break regarding the story, she found out that the students from that school were going to be temporarily transferred to other lycees around Paris. If there was even the slightest possibility that Marinette could encounter her old bullies  _ here _ … well, Alya thought not telling anyone was a recipe for disaster. How could they effectively shield her from her bullies if they had no idea who they were or even that they might be coming? For crying out loud, these might be the very same people that had driven Marinette to attempt suicide!

There was only one thing to do, and that was to try talking some sense into Marinette after school. It was possible she didn’t even know about the student transfers. If she’d been in that bad shape that morning before that news hit, then she’d probably be avoiding the news all day long. If that was the case, maybe Alya could gain some traction by breaking the news to her. Surely she would see the benefit in admitting at least that Marinette had gone there previously.

Of course, all that was assuming that none of their other friends were intelligent enough to figure it out. An entire lycee being shut down while the teachers and admin were investigated for allowing rampant bullying? Combined with knowing that Marinette had transferred there  _ because _ of bullying? Alya devoutly hoped their friend group was smart enough to connect the dots.

Lunch finally arrived… and with it, the confirmation of Alya’s hopes.

“So… that lycee that’s closing,” Juleka drawled as she sat down beside Rose. “I’m guessing that was Marinette’s old school?”

“That’s why she’s not here today?” Rose asked.

“Marinette got sick right after she got to school this morning,” Alya said, sticking to her pledge. Her lack of inflection was a dead give-away, though. “That’s why Adrien, Nino, and I were late to class.”

Juleka merely raised an eyebrow, exchanging a look with Rose, Mylene, Alix, and Kagami. The latter two had taken to eating with them, though Kagami more often than not brought food from home. Her mother was very strict on the matter of her diet, but since she had reasonable portions and didn’t seem to mind the food presented, the girls let it slide without trying to press more food or desserts on her.

“I’m sure she  _ was _ feeling sick,” Kagami replied. Her tone of voice wasn’t as flat as it had been at the beginning of the semester- she was slowly learning how to express nuance and subtext through inflection. 

“Well, if that video is a good example of what went on there, I don’t blame her,” Mylene said.

Alya sighed. There didn’t seem to be much point in denying it. “You know this means we’ll have to be extra careful next semester, right?”

All the girls exchanged glances. “It would be easier if we knew who to watch out for.”

“I know,” Alya sighed. “Adrien and I are going to drop off the final study guides this afternoon, so I’ll try to get some names from her. If I can’t, maybe we can try again at the holiday party. Surely, she’s got to see the benefit in telling us, right?”

“You and  _ Adrien _ , huh?” Alix smirked. Everything from smiles to broad grins spread across the faces around the table. The model’s crush had not gone unnoticed among his friends, and Alya was relieved to see that Kagami had a small smile on her face, too. A few years ago she’d seemed more than willing to be the object of his attention, but since nothing had come of that, she’d apparently moved on. It was a relief not having to worry about Kagami being jealous, especially since Alya still wasn’t sure jealousy would be warranted. Marinette had begun unbending toward Adrien lately, but she was still far from admitting a crush.

“I just hope she’s up for finals tomorrow,” Juleka muttered suddenly, stabbing her food viciously. “The timing on this sucks.”

\----

Marinette wasn’t stupid. She knew she’d have to tell everyone, answer questions… but the mere thought of it sent her heart rate sky-rocketing. Clearly she needed help and that was what her therapist was for. As soon as she got home, she dialed the number for the office and scheduled an appointment.

“I’m afraid Dr. Fu doesn’t have any openings until tomorrow,” the receptionist told her. “Is this an emergency?”

“N-no,” Marinette said, tracing a line of permanent marker on the counter in the kitchen, left by a five-year old Marinette who thought any flat surface was fair game for drawing. “I just… need some advice. But I kinda need it by tomorrow?”

“Hm. Would a phone session be alright? Dr. Fu sometimes does a phone consultation during his lunch hour- that’s between noon and 1 pm. Otherwise the earliest I can get you in is 3 pm tomorrow.”

Marinette closed her eyes and slipped off the stool, beginning to pace. “Um, the phone thing would be ok, I guess,” she said. “I don’t really need to be there, I just need to talk to him.”

“Alright,” the receptionist said. “I’ll check with him and give you a call back within… fifteen minutes. Is that ok?”

Marinette nodded, then said, “Yes, that will be fine. Thank you.” She hung up and stared at her phone. It was only 9:30 am. She chewed on her bottom lip, then started up the steps to her attic room and her computer. An internet search was in order.

\----

Adrien had Gorilla drop Nino off before swinging by the bakery. Nino hadn’t felt like he could add anything to the study time, since he was already feeling overwhelmed and just needed some downtime before he dove back in. 

Alya had stubbornly resisted all attempts to take her home first, too. Apparently she really needed to talk to Marinette. She did try to convince Adrien to go on home after dropping off the study materials, but Adrien firmly refused. Whatever Alya wanted to talk to Marinette about, he wanted to be in on it, too. Not knowing what was going on with his Ladybug was driving him crazy. 

So it was the two of them who entered the bakery that afternoon. Tom waved cheerfully from the register and called back to his wife, who briefly appeared in the door to the main kitchen to wave before returning to whatever she was doing back there.

“Hey kids! Marinette is out on a delivery right now, but she’ll be back soon,” he said, glancing at his watch. “Do you want anything while you wait?”

Adrien blinked at the idea of Marinette, who had collapsed in his arms just that morning, being sent out on deliveries, but decided not to push it. Alya frowned slightly but picked out a pastry without saying anything. Adrien was tempted to try one, too, but he’d already had his cheat day for that week, so he refrained. He did make a mental note to come back on his next cheat day, though. The smells in the bakery made his mouth water.

Marinette was indeed back soon. They hadn’t even been there five minutes before she rushed through the door. Adrien couldn’t help relaxing a little seeing her smile at her father. “Two dozen croissants delivered! Mrs. Alapain says hello, Papa. Is there anything else?”

“Not right now, pumpkin. Besides, your friends are here,” Tom said, nodding toward the small bistro table where Adrien and Alya sat across from each other. Her smile froze for a second before she turned to look at them.

“Hey guys,” she said, her grin stretching wider, yet looking more like a grimace. “Why don’t you come upstairs? That way we won’t be in the way.” By the time she reached the end of the last sentence, she’d dropped her gaze and lost her confident and relaxed posture.

Wordlessly, Adrien and Alya exchanged looks and got up to follow her out a door at the back of the small public area in the bakery and into a stairwell. “Thanks for waiting,” Marinette said, walking up the stairs before them. Adrien kept his eyes firmly on the back of her head. “It… might seem odd for me to be out running deliveries, but honestly I’ve been cooped up all day just  _ thinking _ , and I really needed to do something mindless and physical.”

They went up to the second floor before Marinette unlocked an apartment door and let them all in. 

“Thanks for having us over,” Alya said, smiling as she stepped past Marinette into the small apartment. “I know the circumstances suck, but it’s nice to see where you live.”

Marinette flushed. “Oh. Right. I- I guess this is the first time… I’m not really used to inviting people over, you know?’

Adrien gave her a sympathetic smile as he, too, entered the apartment. He looked around with interest. At first glance it just seemed… small. His bedroom was probably larger than this whole space- although he was aware he wasn’t seeing the whole apartment. There were built-in bookshelves full of pictures, books, and a vase or two on the exterior wall to the left of the door and a staircase up to the top floor to the right after a brief entryway. Beyond that, a small kitchen area opposite a living room arrangement next to the windows.

Despite the size of the space, it felt open and airy, and… homelike. There were small signs of constant habitation- a glass peeking out over the edge of the sink, a pair of shoes on the floor next to the door, Marinette’s blazer slung (neatly) over the arm of the couch. A few magazines were spread on the coffee table- but unlike his father’s snooty coffee-table books, two of them were open to articles, and the rest had dog-eared pages signaling that they’d been read or were going to be. A game console under the TV had a couple of controllers spilling out of basket on the floor next to it, clearly in regular use. Adrien pictured Marinette becoming Ladybug in front of that TV over the years he’d known her and smiled.

“Come on up to my room,” Marinette said, and gestured toward the stairs. Instead of a vertical door at the top of the stairs, there was a trapdoor, which Adrien thought was rather odd. But when he stepped up into the room, it was clear it was a converted attic. 

Honestly, his first thought was  _ that’s a lot of pink. _ The walls, desk chair, and various desk accessories were pink with black accents. The walls, however, were at least partially covered fashion magazine pages, many of which he recognized as his own. A little frisson of excitement ran up his spine, until he realized that most of the pictures had scribbled notes on them, with arrows pointing to various parts of the clothing on display, and some of the full-figure ads had the top folded over, hiding the face from view. And he wasn’t the only model featured, either, not by any means.

He recognized models from all the major brands, though  _ Gabriel _ did predominate. Clearly, she was a fan of his father’s designs, and just as clearly (and as she’d claimed) she cared more about the clothing than the models. His heart sank a little, even though she’d told him that months ago. Then he gave himself a mental shake. He wasn’t here to woo Marinette, he was here to give her study materials and hopefully cheer her up and support her as a friend.

He now noticed that her bed was actually a loft, with an L-shaped desk underneath. But she still had adequate seating, with a small chaise and two desk chairs, one of which was parked in front of a sewing machine on the small part of the L. There was a neatly folded white bundle beside the sewing machine and snips of white thread here and there, as if she’d just finished something. Marinette sat in one of the chairs and Alya took the other, leaving him with the chaise. He sat down and pulled his messenger bag closer to dig around in it for the updated study-guides.

“So…” Alya said, getting out her own contribution. “I kept my promise and didn’t mention anything, but… you know our friends  _ are _ pretty smart. They figured out pretty quickly that was your old school,” she continued quietly.

Marinette bit her lip but nodded. “Yeah, I… I was expecting something like that. But I did spend part of today preparing for tomorrow.” She reached behind her for a stack of papers. She handed one to Alya and then one to Adrien.

Adrien looked down to see what could only be called a list of talking points. He’d been doing interviews since he was fourteen and his father officially named him the face of Gabriel, so he was well acquainted with interview cheat sheets. This read almost the same way.

  * Yes, I attended that school before I transferred here.
  * Yes, I transferred because I was being bullied.
  * No, nothing like what happened in the video ever happened to me.
  * etc.



It went on like that for almost twenty possible questions people could ask her, and Adrien looked up with a crooked smile.

“This is brilliant,” he said, handing the sheet back to her. “You’re just going to hand these out to whoever wants to know?”

“That’s the idea,” Marinette said, giving him a shaky smile in return. “I’m... I don’t know why it freaks me out to talk about it, but… I know people are going to be curious and… anyway, I talked to my therapist and he agreed that I needed to find a way to face all the questions without going, you know, catatonic. So we came up with this.” She pushed a bit of hair behind her ear and looked down at the page Adrien had handed back to her. “Do you think it’ll work?”

“I think it’s a lot more than people deserve, if they’re going to be rude enough to ask,” Alya grumped. “But yeah, I think it’ll work. Probably a lot better than trying to actually say anything. You’d just end up repeating yourself over and over if you told people what’s written here. This way, even if they try to mob you, you can just start handing out pages and everyone will back off to read it. And honestly, you’ve covered everything that they could possibly think they’re ‘entitled to know,’” she said, rolling her eyes.

“Plus, we’ll run interference for you,” Adrien added, when he saw her tense up at the mention of being mobbed. “If you give all of us a couple of copies each, I’m sure you won’t get mobbed at all.”

“There’s just one thing,” Alya said slowly, “and I’m not sure you should include it on the sheet, but… there aren’t any names here. And that’s definitely something that, as your friends, we should know.”

Marinette closed her eyes in pain. She didn’t say anything.

“Look, I get that you don’t want to tell us, but I don’t know  _ why _ ,” Alya pressed. “There’s a chance- however small- that some of your bullies will end up at our school. Honestly, do you want us to accidentally make friends with them, just because we didn’t know who they are? ” Alya reached over and put a hand on Marinette’s shoulder. Marinette herself sat in her chair as if she were physically holding herself there, bracing for some kind of impact. “ _ Please _ , Marinette. I don’t want to see you hurt again. And I definitely don’t want to find out that someone I thought might be cool and was already befriending turned out to be a bully.”

“Would it help if you wrote down the names?” Adrien asked, softly. “That way you wouldn’t have to say them.”

Marinette let out an explosive breath. “I… I can’t. N-not today.” She opened her eyes and regarded them pleadingly. “Please?”

Adrien and Alya exchanged a glance before smiling sympathetically and nodding.

“Okay. Thanks.” Marinette heaved a sigh of relief. Adrien watched some of the tension drain away from her shoulders. How he wished he could massage away some more of that tension without it being unexpected and creepy. 

There was a moment of slightly awkward silence before Adrien cleared his throat. “So,” he said, handing over the adjusted study sheet. “It’s all basically the same, except-” 

They went over class notes for a while. Adrien took a break for the bathroom about twenty minutes in, and when he came back up the stairs, he heard low, urgent voices. It honestly didn’t sound like normal studying, and he paused to listen. His conscience pricked him, but… he wanted to know what was going on.

“Look, I’m just glad you’re here,” Alya was saying. “And I won’t tell anyone else if you don’t want me to, but I couldn’t not say anything.”

“Thank you for telling me,” Marinette said, but her voice was a little robotic. Adrien realized he’d missed the most important parts of the conversation, so he crept down a few steps and then made sure to step heavily on his way back up so they could hear him. By the time his head poked up through the trapdoor, Alya was explaining something their teacher had told them that day.

Marinette looked pale but not upset, so Adrien reluctantly let it go. Whatever it was, she obviously didn’t want others knowing.

\----

“Oh, wait a minute, Adrien,” Marinette said unexpectedly as Adrien moved toward the open hatch. He had taken a moment longer to stuff his notes back into his bag, so Alya was already down in the living room waiting for him. He paused at the top of the stairs while Marinette sent her chair rolling over to the sewing machine. She picked up the white bundle of cloth and beckoned him over.

“I made these for you,” she said, handing it over. Adrien took it without really thinking, surprised. He unfolded it to see a pair of fencing knickers. His eyebrows rose. “I-I think I got the m-measurements right,” Marinette said, stuttering a little. “B-but the waist-band is adjustable in case I didn’t.”

A half-smile found it’s way onto his face and Adrien looked from Marinette back to the pants and up again. “... okay? Um, thanks, but I have plenty-”

“Oh, I know, but… well,” Marinette said, and this time he was sure she was blushing. She bit her lip and reached over to show him something on the side seam. There was a tiny zipper tag there, and she pulled it to reveal a hidden pocket. 

“Y-you said your uniform doesn’t have any pockets, and I’ve seen how uncomfortable you get when you don’t know what to do with your hands, so… I couldn’t find any online that had pockets, so just in case they’re not allowed, I hid the zippers. They shouldn’t interfere with your movement or scoring in any way.” Marinette met his eyes and quickly looked back down. “They would have been done weeks ago, but I had to special order the fabric.”

Adrien’s half-smile grew bemused. Due to her friendship with him and Kagami, Marinette had been to a few minor fencing matches, and between the nerves that always came with competition and proximity to  _ her _ , Adrien had made a fool of himself on more than one occasion. The last time she came, Adrien had actually been reaching out when she suddenly turned and caught him with his arm extended. He’d blushed tomato red, and Kagami had given him a  _ look _ , and even though he swore to Nino he’d only meant to put a friendly hand on her shoulder, he had teased him about grabby hands for days. 

And she’d  _ noticed _ . She’d made him fencing knickers with  _ pockets. _ His heart melted. It was possibly the sweetest thing anyone had ever done for him, and she was utterly adorable. How was he supposed to stand there and thank her civilly  _ without _ kissing her?

He was still trying to figure that out when Alya came to his rescue. “Adrien, are you coming?” she called, jogging back up the steps. The way her eyebrows rose when she saw his expression told Adrien he probably looked like Marinette hung the moon. “What’s going on here?”

“M-Marinette made me something,” Adrien got out in a breathless voice. Unfortunately, the act of speaking unlocked his gross motor skills and he darted forward to grab her in a tight hug. She stiffened for just a moment and he closed his eyes, afraid he’d just ruined everything. But then she relaxed and hugged him back, chuckling a little.

“I’m glad you like them,” she said. “I hope they will help.”

Adrien had to chuckle at that. The irony of her present was not lost on him, not even a little. He managed to keep himself from kissing the top of her head as he pulled away from the hug, though he couldn’t resist pressing his cheek into her soft hair just a little. “Thank you, Marinette,” he said, gazing down into her blue eyes. She smiled up at him and he nearly lost all his senses completely. Her face grew nearer and nearer, until...

“Oookay, down boy!” Alya joked, pulling him back by his messenger bag strap. “We really need to get going. See you tomorrow, M!”

And with that, she physically propelled him down the stairs, out of the apartment, and back into the car. Once Adrien could think again, he thanked her.

“So just what did she make you that had you so worked up?” she asked, eyeing the crumpled fabric still clutched in his hands. Adrien laughed, and once he got started on that it was hard to stop.

  
“F..F-fencing knickers,” he gasped out. “ _ With pockets! _ ” He dissolved into laughter again at her confusion. He’d call Nino later, knowing his best bro would understand.


	19. Chapter 19

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Adrien has an unexpected interview.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Part 1 of a prompt from [bugaboo-n-bananoir](https://bugaboo-n-bananoir.tumblr.com) on tumblr.

Adrien glanced at his phone as he entered the house, realizing he now had very little time before dinner was served. He was hurrying up the stairs to his room when the door to his father’s office opened and Gabriel stepped out. He called out and Adrien stopped with one foot raised, halfway up the stairs.

“Yes, father?” From his father’s tone he felt a more formal manner would be appropriate.

“I need to speak with you a moment,” Gabriel said, and turned to go back into his office without waiting to see if Adrien would follow. Rolling his eyes a little, Adrien turned to go back down the stairs. 

When Adrien entered the office, Nathalie stood from her desk beside the door. Adrien nodded a greeting to her and turned to his father, who was standing on a podium where his designing computer was set up.

“Well, father?”

“I got a call from Nadja Chamack this afternoon,” Gabriel said, eyes and hands flitting over the surface of the large screen. “One of the guests on her prime time show tonight cancelled unexpectedly and she was looking for someone to fill the slot. I know it’s short notice, but I agreed that she could interview you.”

“It’s only been a month since the last one, though,” Adrien said, trying to find a way out. He was currently too happy to be able to sit still and answer the same questions interviewers always asked him with little to no variation. “Don’t you think that’s a little soon?”

Gabriel looked up at him, then his eyes flitted to the white cloth in his hands. “What is that?”

Adrien blushed, but couldn’t keep the grin off his face. “It’s um… new fencing knickers.”

“I thought you had plenty of pairs. Nathalie, didn’t we order more at the beginning of the school year?”

“Yes, sir. Adrien shouldn’t need any unless he gets another growth spurt.”

Gabriel raised one eyebrow at his son and put his hands behind his back.

“Marinette made them for me,” Adrien answered the unspoken question, his grin widening despite his best efforts.

“And this amuses you?”

Adrien chuckled. “Yeah. It’s kind of like an inside joke. But they’re good quality, and I do intend to wear them, at least for school practices.”

Gabriel held out one hand, and Adrien handed over the pants for inspection. It irked him a little to have Marinette’s work inspected like that, but he knew his father and he had faith in Marinette’s skill. Maybe she could impress him before she ever met him.

Gabriel turned and tugged at the garment, testing the material and the seams, even going so far as to turn them inside out. That was when he found the hidden pockets. Marinette had sewn them to the lining so the outer layer would move without restriction and the pockets wouldn’t hang down awkwardly if he put something heavy in them. When he saw them, he gave Adrien another look, turned the pants right side out, and hunted for the hidden zippers. Once he found them he pursed his lips and gave them back.

“Your friend does at least seem to know her way around both a pattern and a sewing machine. They  _ are _ well made, and I don’t object to you wearing them in public. But only for practices, is that understood? I will not have you jeopardizing your tournament standing with non-compliant wear, however well concealed those pockets are.”

“Yes, father,” Adrien said. He didn’t mind. At a tournament Marinette would have to stay in the stands well away from him, so he wouldn’t have the same problem trying to keep a proper distance. And that was assuming she’d even come.

“Now, about that interview…”

Adrien sighed, knowing he wasn’t going to get out of it.

\----

“Well, Adrien! What a nice surprise! Come sit down.”

Noelle greeted Adrien with pleasure as soon as he entered the small dressing room set aside for the guests on Nadja Chamack’s various programs and shows. She’d done his makeup countless times over the years, and he was one of her favorites. He was always polite and pleasant, never getting irritated with her pace or trying to move his head just as she was doing a tricky area like the eyes. 

He had always been a handsome boy, and while some of those went through a distinctly awkward phase when they hit puberty, Adrien had weathered that hormonal roller coaster quite well- at least outwardly. And since he continued to treat not only her but also anyone else he came into contact with on a professional basis with courtesy, she assumed he’d weathered it internally as well, though she was sure he’d probably had his fair share of bad choices and rebellions. Now, at nearly 17, he was shaping up to be a handsome young man.

“I don’t have any specific notes for you tonight. Any preferences?” Noelle said, getting his personal make-up bag out of the cupboard. She kept dedicated bags for each of her ‘regular’ clients. It made things much simpler and kept the possibility of cross-contaminated make-up to a minimum.

“Well, I’d like to look a little older? Like I’m maturing, I mean,” Adrien said. “Dad’s shoots have always emphasized ‘innocence’ and ‘youth,’ and while I’m sure that sells the clothes to parents who don’t want to believe their kids are growing up…” he trailed off, and gave her a half-smile in the mirror, shrugging a little.

Noelle laughed. “I get it. And it’s not a problem. We’ll just emphasize that nicely firming jawline and go from there, ok?”

“Sounds good,” Adrien said with a sigh of relief.

“So,” Noelle said, after a few minutes of steady work. “Are you trying to subtly tell your father you’re ready for more mature shoots? Or do you finally have someone else you want to impress? I’ve got to say, I hope it’s the latter, because from what I can tell, Gabriel Agreste does not notice ‘subtle.’”

She was close enough to see Adrien’s blush even through the first few layers of make-up and smirked to herself.

“Ah, so you do have your eye on someone,” she teased. “Or is it already official?”

Adrien grinned, the smile spreading over his face as if he couldn’t help himself. “No, it’s not official. But she’s… amazing.”

“Well, good. I just hope she’s not one of your crazy fan-girls, though.”

“No, she’s not,” Adrien assured her, quite easily. That was a good sign. He was no fool, but he was still young and didn’t have a lot of experience with love yet. While Noelle did have clients she would quite cheerfully push into the Seine if she had the chance, Adrien wasn’t one of them. He deserved to have a good experience with his first love. Which is why she decided to push a little more.

“And you’re sure of that?”

Adrien laughed, but tried not to move too much while doing so, which Noelle appreciated, since she was in the process of contouring. “Yeah I’m pretty sure, considering she told me at the outset we couldn’t be more than friends, and casual ones at that.”

Noelle backed off a bit to raise her eyebrows at him. Adrien smiled at her. “She wants to be a designer,” he explained. “She’s actually really good already, and she thinks she’ll ruin her reputation  _ as a designer _ if she gets too close with someone in one of the big fashion houses.” He sighed then, his smile falling a little. “I can’t really blame her. You know how much weight gossip has in the fashion world. One stupid rumor heard by the wrong person and it could take her years to get noticed.”

“That good, huh? Look up...” Noelle asked absently as she focused on his eye-liner.

“Definitely. She could give some of dad’s junior designers a run for their money, and she’s a little younger than I am. Just imagine how good she’ll be in another couple of years when we all graduate.”

“Well,” Noelle said thoughtfully, “If she’s really that good, I don’t see why you two can’t be together. Rumors or no, talent will always be recognized. Maybe she could enter a whole bunch of design contests? Once she starts winning awards, especially from a wide range of houses, any rumors of favoritism should go away.”

Adrien opened his mouth as if to protest, but shut it again, which was convenient for Noelle who quickly brushed a neutral lipstick on before he could start talking again. He had a pretty good ‘resting model face,’ but she could tell he was thinking. Well good. He was a sweet kid, and he deserved to be with someone he could admire for more than looks. And since this girl apparently wasn’t going for his throat the way all his fans did, Noelle could give her a tentative approval as well. Not that it was any of  _ her _ business, but she knew him enough to want good things for Adrien.

“And you’re done!” she said, stepping back and giving his face one final lookover to make sure everything was blended and nothing stood out more than it was supposed to. The subtle contouring she’d done did make him look a little older, a little more mature, and she watched him smile in satisfaction as he looked in the mirror.

“Thanks, Noelle,” he said, standing up. “You’re the best.”

“That’s why they pay me the big bucks,” Noelle joked. “Go knock ‘em dead.”

“I’d really rather not,” he said with a wry grin. “If I could get them to  _ stop _ being so interested in me, that would be better.”

“Yeah, that’s not going to happen. Now go on,” she said checking the clock in the dressing room. “It’s almost your turn.”

He gave her a small salute and left. Noelle chewed on the inside of her cheek while she tidied up the makeup and cleaned her brushes. Technically, her job was two-fold. She did the guests’ make-up… and she was supposed to pass on any interesting tid-bits she might overhear, so that the interviews and guest spots had at least a little spontaneity to them. Normally she didn’t have a problem with that, but Adrien was a good kid, and he obviously wanted more privacy than he was getting. 

On the other hand… while they had an amicable professional relationship, she didn’t really know him well enough to justify covering for him. At least, not completely. She decided to ride the fence a bit and took out her phone to text the show’s director. He’d be feeding Nadja suggestions as the show went on, so she told him to tell Nadja to press a little on the sweetheart front. She didn’t betray his confidence more than that- he was getting older, and it would be normal for people to start assuming he had a romantic interest. She was pretty sure he wouldn’t be able to convincingly fool anyone that he didn’t- not with a camera practically in his face- and that would boost the show’s ratings, even if he didn’t reveal anything about the girl on air. It was a nice compromise for her.

\----

“Alright, we have time for one more question,” Nadja said, after going through the set questions and getting very little for her efforts. No matter how she phrased them, they were the same things her guest had been asked over and over across the years, and his answers hadn’t changed much, if at all. But hopefully this one would throw him for a loop. Her director had suggested it and she was willing to go with it if it meant something other than a rote answer that had already been read or heard a dozen times.

Adrien nodded, smiling politely, and Nadja felt a sudden spike of malicious anticipation, which surprised her. Adrien was a good kid and she’d known him for years- she even felt like she could say she’d watched him grow up. But that didn’t mean she wasn’t frustrated with his lack of cooperation. Her shows depended largely on new information and shock value, and he’d been stubbornly boring with his answers this evening. He might be a big name now, but if he didn’t mix it up a little, he wasn’t going to remain so for long. But maybe she could knock some of the blandness off his face with this next question.

“You’re nearly 17, right?” Nadja started, “and I’m sure you’ve noticed that all of Paris seems to fancy you,” she said with a little smile. “But tell us- is there someone who’s caught  _ your _ eye?”

Adrien blinked, his mouth dropping open a bit before his eyes sought out the teleprompter which held the list of questions Nadja was supposed to ask. Nadja knew this one wasn’t listed, so he’d had no warning, no opportunity to come up with a bland and uninteresting answer.

He cleared his throat. “Well,” he said, shifting in his seat and folding his hands- something Nadja recognized as an effort to hide nervousness. “Um…”

Nadja smiled in triumph. She had him now. “Ah, so there  _ is _ someone,” she replied, sitting forward in expectation. “Well, well, Paris’ top teen model is officially off the market! That’s going to disappoint a lot of your fans.”

“No, no,” Adrien hastened to say, eyes widening slightly with what almost looked like panic. “I’m not… we’re not… I haven’t said anything!” he blurted out. Nadja laughed, tuning out the director’s voice in her ear. It wasn’t as if she didn’t know to milk this reaction for all it was worth.

“So, tell us a little bit about them,” she pressed. “If she- or he?- caught the interest of Adrien Agreste, they must be pretty extraordinary.”

Adrien gulped and Nadja could tell he was blushing, even under all the stage make-up. Her smile grew just a little more predatory.

“She’s amazing,” he finally said, relaxing as he gave in to the inevitable, his expression soft, eyes shining with his admiration. “She’s really kind and generous to everyone. She’s been through a lot in her life, but she’s always trying to brighten someone else’s day. And she’s  _ so _ talented! She’s got a really bright future ahead of her, which is why I haven’t… I mean, there are always rumors when someone like me, in the spotlight, gets close to someone else, you know? Motivations, in particular. People are bound to ask if they’re just pursuing me because of my connections. But I’d like to think I’m pretty good at telling when people are only being friendly to get something, you know? And she’s nothing like that. As a matter of fact,” he said, warming to the subject. “She flat-out told me she couldn’t date me a few days after we met. But…” he smiled, shrugging. “What can I say? The heart wants what it wants, and I can tell you- she’s worth… anything. I just hope people can respect her privacy and mine,” he finished, with a pointed little look that amused Nadja. As if a sixteen year old could really intimidate  _ her _ , no matter how famous he was.

But he wasn’t really trying to intimidate her, she reflected. He was simply asking for a common courtesy, and she did feel a  _ little _ guilty now that she had what she was going for. According to the director’s voice in her ear, the ratings were going up and there was every indication at least this little snippet of the interview was going to go viral.

“She sounds like a wonderful person- a real catch! Can we expect to see you two out and about any time soon?”

“Probably not,” Adrien said firmly. 

Nadja mock pouted. “Can we at least have a name?”

“After what I just said about privacy?” Adrien chuckled. “I’m afraid the best I can do for you is ‘Ladybug.’”

Nadja knew when to admit defeat, and she’d already gotten more than enough for the gossip mill. So she wrapped up the interview and the show itself, glad that Adrien- as a guest- would be hustled off-stage to get his make-up removed, and she could slip away to her own dressing room. She probably wouldn’t be in Gabriel’s good graces for a while- not to mention Adrien’s- but she knew that neither of them would publicly call her out. Such things just weren’t done, and Adrien didn’t have to actually reveal anything. He could have simply denied it and that would have been that. No one would have believed him after that reaction, but he could have. Instead, he had given her more information than she’d really hoped for.

The next day there was a new flower arrangement in her dressing room along with a note clipped to a bonus check that informed her just how profitable her little scoop had been.

\----

Adrien kept the smile on his face as far as to the dressing room. Fortunately for him, it was currently empty. His smile dropped and he locked the door before going to the counter. Noelle had left make-up removal wipes out for him, and he savagely yanked a couple out of the holder.

He began swiping at his face, scraping the make-up off instead of merely wiping. He was furious- with Noelle, with Nadja... but mostly at himself. He was glad Noelle wasn’t in the room at the moment, since it was likely she was the one to tip off Nadja about his romantic feelings. He would have found it hard to be polite to her just at the moment. 

He hated being put on the spot. Hated it! But after his initial deer-in-headlights reaction, he’d realized he had two choices. He could either try to deny it and play it off as being caught off-guard… or actually admit that he had feelings for someone. And like an idiot, he’d chosen the one that could get him in the most trouble.

In the moment, all he could think about was how nice it would be not to be hounded by fan-girls for a while. And so he’d stupidly started talking about Marinette. Oh, he hadn’t given her name, but he’d given enough specifics- her freakin’  _ UMS screenname  _ for one!- that she’d be able to figure out he was talking about her as soon as she saw the clip. And that… could be a disaster.

She didn’t like him that way. Or at least, according to Nino and tentatively Alya, she didn’t  _ want _ to like him romantically. And here he was,  _ on national television, _ claiming that they were already dating! Well… he hadn’t actually said they were dating. But from what he  _ had _ said, people were going to assume. Probably were already assuming.

He buried his face in yet another wipe, groaning. How could he possibly fix this? Sighing, he tossed the wipe in the trash and looked at himself in the mirror. The make-up was gone, leaving him looking like the exhausted version of himself that no one else ever saw.

He considered how likely it was that Marinette saw the interview. She wasn’t into the models, so maybe she hadn’t tuned in. But then, she did consider him a friend, so maybe…? But it was a last minute thing, not advertised, and he hadn’t told any of his friends about it…

  
Groaning again, he wondered if he could get Max to hack the TV station. If the interview got corrupted or deleted… but it had gone out  _ live _ . Too many people had seen it, and it was going to be all over youtube and message boards before morning. Still… maybe he could keep her from seeing it. All he had to do was to stop people talking about it in front of her. He could do that… right? 


	20. Chapter 20

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Adrien deals with the consequences of his confession. Lila takes advantage of the plum dropped in her lap. Marinette learns the truth... or does she?

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So sorry this took so long. Here you go!

Nathalie was waiting for him in the foyer when Adrien got home. Nathalie was never expressive, but her demeanor suggested she’d caught him with his hand in the cookie jar. And for a model on a nutrition plan, that was a serious offense. Unless it was a cheat day. But it wasn’t a cheat day, in more senses than one, and Adrien knew that perfectly well. He gave her his very best sheepish grin, rubbing the back of his neck for good measure.

“Did… did he see it?” Adrien asked, almost hating himself for how uncertain he sounded. The last thing he wanted was for his father to lecture him on the proper behavior to adopt in an interview. Still, it was reaching a bit to hope that his dad hadn’t watched the interview as it was happening, since he knew it was last minute and Adrien hadn't been prepared.

Nathalie shook her head, though, relieving his fear. “No, an urgent call from a supplier in Germany came through before you went on and he took it. However…” Nathalie’s face assumed an expression of mild disapproval. “You really should have told him your intention to publicly reveal a relationship  _ before _ you did it.”

“But I didn’t even know it was going to be a question!” Adrien protested. “It just… kinda came out. I didn’t plan it or anything, heck- she doesn’t even know I feel that way about her!” Again Adrien cringed internally. Marinette was going to be _so_ mad at him…

“That is  _ not _ the way it sounded in the interview,” Nathalie said sternly. “Nor is it how the public sees things. Your relationship status is currently trending on twitter, and people can’t seem to stop talking about how sweet it is that you finally have a girlfriend.”

“Oh no,” Adrien groaned. Not that he hadn’t expected it, but… “Don’t tell my father, alright? I… I need to find out what Marinette thinks about all this- it’s not like I had a chance to warn her before it happened. Anyway, I’d rather be able to tell him whether this is a relationship that’s going to happen or not before I talk to him about it. Please?” he begged, shamelessly using his best puppy dog eyes and nevermind that he’d just been wishing the adults in his life would treat  _ him _ as an adult, too. 

Nathalie gazed at him contemplatively before nodding. “Alright Adrien, but you have to remember that he will likely be informed of it as soon as media outlets start calling tomorrow.”

“I know, but I’ll be at school by then.” Adrien offered a feeble grin. “I just hope the fangirls don’t go crazy over this,” he added under his breath as he made his way to his room. He had some planning to do.

\----

After talking to Nathalie, it was clear that Adrien couldn’t follow his original plan of making sure Marinette  _ never _ found out about the interview. Instead, his new plan was to keep her from finding out until he could talk to her in person about it. He briefly considered calling or texting her that evening, but it was already late, and it had been a very long day. She’d already been through a lot emotionally, and their first finals were tomorrow, meaning she  _ needed _ a good night’s rest. Adrien had given up on having that himself even before he talked to Nathalie. Ah well, it just gave him more time to strategize.

He briefly considered and then discarded asking Max to hack, not the tv station, but Marinette’s phone. It was too limited in scope- she could see the interview or read about it from any number of different phones or computers, and that didn’t even count the fashion magazines or newspapers. It would just look suspicious if something like that showed up on every device  _ but _ hers. Plus, he was fairly sure that hacking her phone wouldn’t give him any points in her book. 

No, he’d have to do this the old fashioned-way- by word-of-mouth. And with that thought, he got busy texting.

\----

Lila smiled as she approached school that day. She knew it was going to be a great day, and not even the prospect of finals could effectively dampen her mood.

“Lila!” Claudette practically tackled her at the entrance to the school. “O. M. G. Girl! Did you see your boyfriend’s interview last night?! He was soooo sweet! And he’s  _ so _ in love with you… Not that you don’t deserve it, you deserve every good thing!”

Lila laughed at her friend. “Well, of course I saw it, silly, I was  _ there!” _ Her eyes sparkled right along with Claudette’s, though her reason had more to do with the sheer, beautiful  _ luck _ of Adrien Agreste choosing to be vague about his cher amie.

“Awwww!” Claudette cooed. Then she pouted. “But why couldn’t he have at least said your name? I mean, if you were right there, he could have called you out on the floor and everything! It would have been so cute and romantic…” she trailed off with a happy sigh. It was enough to draw another laugh out of Lila, but then she sobered.

“Well, we decided that I should stay out of the spotlight for now,” Lila said, dipping her chin a little, imitating humility. “Not that we wanted to, really, he just doesn’t want any of his fans coming after me right now… you know, while I’m still vulnerable. I’m sure we’ll go public as soon as everything gets sorted out here, though,” she assured the girl, whose face had gone from excited exuberance to sympathy. Ultimately, Lila had once again decided to lie about why the school was being investigated, implying that it was due to evidence she had herself presented to the school board- all about her own bullying experiences, of course. As a result, her entourage now firmly believed that  _ she _ was the reason for the investigation, and the video about Tikki’s assault was merely a juicy tidbit for the news to air. And the beauty of it was that it wasn’t even much of a lie. More of a twisted truth, really.

Lila smiled in satisfaction. Claudette wouldn’t be able to resist spreading her version of the interview, and since Adrien had, unknowingly, described Lila’s school persona almost perfectly, there wasn’t anyone in her circle who would doubt it. A double bonus was that now she knew exactly how to act around him if she and he ever met. No doubt she’d be able to captivate him just as she had any of the other boys, and possibly even make her lie a truth… sometime in the future. For now, she was content to let him remain ignorant of their supposed relationship.

\----

Adrien had carefully concealed dark circles under his eyes as he and Nino stepped out of the car in front of school the next morning. He did breathe a sigh of relief at the absence of screaming fan-girls. That would have been hard to explain to a curious friend. He caught sight of Marinette talking to Alya on the front steps, both of them bundled up against the snow flurries that had decided to grace the Parisian air that day. He winced and hesitated, only moving forward when propelled by Nino’s hand on his shoulder.

Nino had been giving him the hardest time ever since Gorilla had picked him up that morning. But at least he had confirmed that Alya was going to do everything possible to keep Marinette distracted until Adrien had a chance to talk to her alone.

“Dude,” Nino said now, shoving Adrien toward the girls. “Just tell her the truth- they put you on the spot and you kinda lost your head a little. Marinette’s cool, she’ll understand.”

Adrien just groaned, but pasted a smile on as they neared the girls. They exchanged brief greetings before hurrying inside out of the cold. Snow was picturesque and all that, but it became less so when it was blowing in your face hard enough to sting your cheeks. 

Adrien was glad to see that Marinette seemed to be back to her old self, perhaps just a little more jumpy than normal. Surprisingly, everyone stayed away from any topic close to her old school or the people therein, so the sheets of answered questions she’d handed to himself, Nino, and Alya weren’t even needed. Adrien had a shrewd notion that his interview of the night before had a little something to do with that. If that was true, he could at least be grateful for that.

He did catch a lot of girls giving him looks as they went to their first class though, and many of them turned to whisper as they passed, grinning and giggling to each other. Adrien sighed and deliberately didn’t smile, though he didn’t let himself frown, either. School was where he got to be himself, no fake model smile. He did make sure to walk next to Alya, so as to avoid any suspicion being cast on Marinette just yet. The last thing he wanted was for someone to come up to her during one of her other classes, or in the hall, and ask if she was Ladybug. Not that that question would give her many clues, but he didn’t want her blindsided by this. He really needed to talk to her soon.

Their first class was going to be a study period, which might have been the perfect opportunity to do so. Every subject had their finals on a specific day of the week, so any class that wasn’t having their test that day allowed the students to study. Unfortunately, despite the fact that he thought he could probably trust most of the people in their first period class not to rat him out, he didn’t want to take the chance of changing seats with Alya just to talk to Marinette. That would be a rather striking change for him, and he wanted to avoid any more talk than necessary. And talking about this while awkwardly turned around in his seat didn’t strike him as the best plan. He did casually brush her elbow as she passed him to get to her own seat, just to get her attention. 

“Hey, can I talk to you after Physics?” he asked. Marinette raised her eyebrows at him, but nodded. “Great,” he said, and then hurried to sit down. The pointed stares and sly grins of all the friends who beat them to the classroom had not gone unnoticed. Physics was one of the subjects that had a final today, so he mechanically pulled out his notes and pretended to study. In reality, he was trying to find the perfect way to confess that he’d just about admitted to being in a relationship with her on live television without warning or even asking her.

\----

Marinette had noticed all the whispering in the halls and in class, and while that might once have made her nervous all on it’s own, no one seemed to be shooting any looks  _ her _ way. Instead, she caught scattered words like “Adrien” and “interview” along with the usual gushing about his looks, and came to the conclusion that Adrien had done another interview and people were talking about that. It even explained the giggles and sighs, and the occasional knot of consoling friends she passed in the halls. In her opinion, Adrien’s fans always went a little overboard when anything new was printed about him. 

Not that she wasn’t curious herself, but she tried to ignore that. She couldn’t quite quash the warm glow of gratitude she felt, though. Adrien’s interview had neatly distracted everyone from the news of her old school closing, which meant she didn’t have to deal with any questions about that. 

And Alya helped. Beyond confirming that Adrien had been a last-minute guest on Nadja Chamack’s show last night, she steered the conversation into other channels. Marinette was grateful for that. Despite all the tutoring and help from the now-regular study sessions in the library, she was still nervous about her physics exam. She did understand a lot more now, but sometimes she still couldn’t remember the right equations for different problems. 

With Adrien in the same class, she had extra incentive to do well. He’d smiled and wished her luck on the exam when they got to class and she didn’t feel like disappointing him. Especially since he’d asked to talk to her after the test. Not that that meant anything. Not really. The fact that she was almost sure he’d been about to kiss her the night before- and that she knew she would have let him- had no bearing on the issue.

No matter what she told herself about how she shouldn’t date him because it would harm her chances as a budding designer, she was still a sixteen year old girl. And she was ashamed to admit that her logic and reasoning could be affected by hormones so much that she could lose sight of her career goals over a boy. A handsome, kind boy who had never done anything but help her. 

There was only one thing for it- she’d have to distance herself again. But… she didn’t want to. As stupid as it was- or so she told herself- she was tempted to give in, to let herself have a little pleasure for once. After all, they were both young… what were the chances they would even stay together for more than a few months? Surely Adrien would get bored with her after a while. It wasn’t like she was anyone special. 

But even as the thoughts passed through her mind, she found herself wishing that… maybe she  _ was _ special- at least to him. She knew it was stupid to hope, that she was likely making a fool of herself and would only get hurt, but… the fact that he wanted to talk to her alone seemed like a good sign. A hopeful sign. She bent over her old-fashioned paper test and got to work, hoping to get through it as quickly as possible.

\----

Adrien took a deep breath after the physics final. Students were allowed to leave after they submitted their test, since phones were confiscated for the duration of the test which made cheating in that way less likely. Adrien finished before Marinette, so he had some time to rehearse what he was going to say and how he was going to act. He decided to go to the library and send her a text. Hopefully she would get the text before going to look for him or heading to the cafeteria for lunch. And this way, he wouldn’t raise any suspicions in other minds by waiting for her near the classroom.

When he got there, he headed to the upholstered reading chairs that were grouped in pairs in front of each vertical window on the outer wall. He sent his text and then decided if he tried to rehearse anymore he would just psych himself out. So he browsed twitter idly while he waited. 

What he saw both was and wasn’t encouraging. It seemed a lot of people approved of his apparent relationship, but many of them were asking for more details. Some even claimed they needed to give their  _ approval _ on whoever had stolen his heart. Adrien was sorely tempted to reply to those, but didn’t. This was the kind of thing  _ Gabriel’s _ PR consultant was for. He’d need to have a talk with them and figure out how to reply to that kind of comment in a way that clearly showed he disagreed, but wouldn’t come off as rude.

To his relief Marinette wasn’t too far behind him. He’d only been there about ten minutes before she came in and looked around for him. He stood and waved, not wanting to draw the librarian’s ire by calling to her. She smiled at him and hurried over, dropping into the other chair. Adrien got hit by a sudden unexpected vision of her dropping so casually into his lap instead of the chair and felt his cheeks burn even as he tried to banish it… as well as the thoughts of how much he wished she would.

He tore his eyes off her and cleared his throat. Marinette looked at him expectantly and… the words that came out of his mouth weren’t the ones he intended.

“So how do you think you did? Did all the extra studying do any good?” He smiled nervously.  _ Why hadn’t he started the way he’d planned?! _ Now he had to wait for her reply before he could even begin to explain things.  _ Way to go Agreste, _ he congratulated himself sarcastically.

Marinette’s expectancy shifted to confusion, but she answered anyway. “Actually, yeah, I think it did,” she smiled, making her cheeks a little pinker than normal. Adrien blinked, and missed the rest of what she said.

“Great!” he said, smiling broadly when she stopped talking about the test.  _ Come on, come on, _ he thought.  _ Just say it. _

But instead of saying it, he sat there staring at her with what he hoped wasn’t a completely love-sick expression. Marinette’s smile shifted to a half, as she continued to look back at him. Meanwhile Adrien was busy beating himself up mentally.  _ Just. Say. It! _

“So,” Marinette prompted. “You wanted to ask me about something?”

“Right, right!” Adrien said, a little too loudly. The librarian looked over at them, frowning. He managed to send her an apologetic smile and mimed quieting down. She turned back to what she was doing, and Adrien started to look over at Marinette before realizing that maybe it would be easier to say what he had to if he  _ wasn’t _ looking at her.

“So, uh,” he cleared his throat again, but tried to be quiet about it. “I… kind of have a confession to make, and I know you’ll probably be mad, but I wanted you to hear it from me, because I really care what you think, and I don’t want you to think that I just do things without thinking like that, even though I  _ wasn’t _ really thinking, and…” Adrien stopped short as Marinette’s finger just appeared on his lips. He tried to look down at it but just ended up cross-eyed, and when Marinette pulled it away with a little smirk, all he could do was stare at her again, mesmerized by the feel of her delicate, soft little finger against his lips…

“Slow down,” she said softly. “It’s ok to be nervous, but if you make yourself slow down you won’t find yourself babbling. Try to make all the sound in a word individually, ok?”

Adrien blinked and swallowed. “O… kay,” he said, still dazed. He took a deep breath and tried again. “Look, I…” he consciously tried to slow down as she’d suggested and found himself feeling much calmer all of a sudden. “I did something stupid. I had an interview last night, it was last minute- I didn’t even know about it until I got home. So… anyway, the lady- Nadja Chamack, I’m sure you’ve watched at least one of her shows- she got to the last question and I wasn’t expecting it, you know? So, she asks me if I have feelings for anyone, and I… I just started describing you. I didn’t use your name, or anything,” he hurried to add, seeing her eyes widen and expression fall into neutral. “But I’m sure, if you watched it or read it somewhere, you’d recognize yourself. And,” he added, wincing a little bit despite himself, “when she asked me for a name, I told them your UMS screen name. Ladybug. And now everyone thinks we’re dating, even though I never confirmed that. I mean, they don’t know it’s  _ you _ I was talking about, but...” He hesitated, watching her nervously. “So, I just wanted to warn you. I wanted you to hear it from me, and I completely understand if you’re upset, but I want you to know that I didn’t plan it or anything, it just kind of… happened.” 

Marinette had let her gaze drop to her loosely clasped hands, turning her face slightly away from him, and it made it a lot harder to read her expression.

“I can… I can clear everything up if you want,” he offered softly. “But I should probably talk to my PR manager before, just to make sure everything’s clear… I’m really sorry, Marinette.” He reached out to touch her shoulder, desperate to see her face, but she shifted, pulling away, and he drew his hand back. After what he’d done he didn’t blame her, though the implied rejection hurt.

Marinette licked her lips and stood up, picking up her small purse and backpack. “It’s ok, Adrien,” she said, in a voice that sounded normal except that all emotion seemed to have been sucked out of it. “It was an honest mistake. And since no one knows it was me,” her voice wavered a bit, “then it’s fine. It’ll blow over, and we can go back to what we were. Are.” She spared him a glance, and the pained smile she wore broke his heart. “Just friends.”

And with that, she walked away. It was only then that Adrien realized he’d completely forgotten to tell her that he’d love to actually date her if she would allow it.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> My writing process for this particular chapter:
> 
> Me: (write, write, write, stop) "This isn't working." (start over)
> 
> Later  
> Me: (write, write, write, stop) "Nope. Still not going where I want it to." (start over)
> 
> Later  
> Me: (write, write, write, IDEA) (writewritewrite) "Yes! Finally" (writes the whole chapter in one day)
> 
> Later  
> Me: (about to post to AO3) "Eh... I'm not happy with the Lila section." (edit, edit, edit)  
> Me: "Done!"
> 
> It literally all came together today. I still have the sections I abandoned, since I *can* use them, I just realized they'd work better if I put them somewhere else.


	21. Chapter 21

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Adrien catches Marinette before she gets too far and explains himself more fully. Reactions of all types occur.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> There's some Adrienette fluff here... ;)

A cold wave of dread washed over Adrien as he reviewed what he’d said to Marinette and came to the conclusion that she probably thought he  _ didn’t _ have feelings for her at all! He shot out of his chair as if it was a launch pad, cursing softly. He had to catch her before she left the library. He couldn’t let her walk out thinking that everything he’d said was a mistake- that he didn’t actually have feelings for her.

Fortunately Marinette hadn’t made it out of the library before he caught up to her.

“Marinette wait!”

She started and glanced back, but kept walking. But Adrien was almost there. “Please, wait!” 

Adrien didn’t try to keep himself from reaching out this time- stopping her so he could clear up the misunderstanding was more important. He caught her shoulders and spun her around to face him. Her surprise quickly gave way to resignation. He didn’t let go.

“Marinette,” he panted, catching his breath, “I… I wasn’t finished. Please. I’m such an idiot! I was just trying to explain, but somehow I must’ve made it sound like… like admitting to my feelings was a mistake. But no. No, the only mistake was that I didn’t tell  _ you _ before I told the rest of the world.” His eyes were glued to her face, hoping against hope. Praying for her to realize he meant it. “Please. I didn’t mean to hurt you or… I-I would  _ love _ to date you, it’s just that you’ve always said to keep a distance, so… I thought you’d be mad because I didn’t talk to you about it before the interview, but I never, never wanted you to think that what I said wasn’t true.” He bit his lip, looking at her pleadingly. “I like you, Marinette. A lot. You’re incredible for… for so many different reasons. And,” he lowered his voice even more, his cheeks growing hot, “the only reason I need pockets in my fencing pants is because I have the hardest time  _ not _ touching you. I’ve respected your boundaries all this time, but Marinette, if you can look past my stupidity I would love to try being in a relationship with you.”

Someone cleared their throat loudly behind Marinette. Blushing even more, Adrien let go of her shoulders. Marinette stared at him before breaking eye contact and moving… not toward the door, but toward the standing bookshelves where they might be able to find a little privacy. Adrien followed, hesitant but hopeful.

\----

Marinette felt like there was a whirlwind in her mind, circling her thoughts faster and faster with no control over when it would stop, or what would be left when the storm passed. She’d been hopeful of what Adrien wanted to talk about, but then he’d admitted to accidentally talking about her during the interview, and how people were now assuming they were dating, and then he apologized for it as if having feelings for her were a bad thing, and… it was too much like some other experiences she’d had with boys. So she’d decided to cut her losses before her heart got hurt even more, and left. 

But then Adrien came running after her, saying it was a misunderstanding and he did actually want to date her, and… she couldn’t figure out which was the truth. She wanted to believe the latter, but the former promised her less pain. But she was, frankly, tired of living in fear. It was so hard to overcome her past, but she was working on it daily, and here was another opportunity to put a boogeyman to rest once more- if she was brave enough. So her thoughts circled round and round without a resolution in sight. One thing was clear, though- she needed to tell Adrien about what had happened before. Perhaps his reaction would help her decide which course to take.

She found a deserted set of shelves and stopped, Adrien close behind. She didn’t turn to face him just yet, and he didn’t say anything, though she could almost feel his concern. That was… encouraging. Every other time some boy had thought it would be hilarious to lead her on, they’d never been concerned with  _ her _ feelings. She was just supposed to smile and laugh, no matter how hurtful their behavior was. But Adrien at least cared that much for her. Her thoughts stopped swirling chaotically and she regained at least a semblance of control. She took a deep breath and turned around.

“I want to believe you, Adrien,” she said quietly. She deliberately stared at his chest and tried not to shake. “But it’s… hard. I haven’t… back at my old school, when I was fourteen... over the course of a year a lot of the boys in my grade thought it would be hilarious to lead me on, one by one. Some of them were pretty blatant about it, laughing with their friends even as they asked me out. Some of them drew it out over a few days, being sweet to me, bringing small gifts, only to later tell me that it was just a joke and they'd never think of me that way. One of them drew it out long enough I actually agreed to go on a date, and then he stood me up and pretended not to know anything about it the next time I saw him, even going so far as to claim I'd made the whole thing up. Some of them went back and forth between insults one day and compliments the next. I can’t _prove_ that someone put them up to it, but it happened too regularly to be a coincidence.” 

She didn’t add that Lila made a point of pretending to console her after each one of those humiliations. That was the point Lila had started moving away from bullying her directly, and took every opportunity to appear sweet and innocent. Marinette shook off the memories and focused on the boy in front of her. “So... you can understand why this is hard for me.”

Adrien stepped close and cupped her cheeks, gently tilting her head until he could look her in the eyes. His had tears in them. _“I would never do that,”_ he said, tone vibrant with emotion. “Not to anyone, but especially not to you, Marinette. It’s cruel, and I never want to be cruel no matter how much I might hate someone. I _do_ care about you, and I _do_ _want_ to date you.” He let go of her face so he could hug her, and just like always, Marinette found herself relaxing in his embrace.

“I want to trust you,” Marinette whispered. She felt a little pressure on her head and realized Adrien had kissed the top of it.

“Take as much time as you need,” he whispered back. “My feelings aren’t going to change.”

“How can you be so sure?” Marinette asked, screwing her eyes shut and starting to tremble despite her best efforts. That was her biggest fear, after all. Even though it made statistical sense that they wouldn’t stay together forever being as young as they were, she feared that when and if they started dating, he would realize all too quickly that she was a mess and leave.

But Adrien chuckled. “Marinette, you’d have to pull a Chloe and change for the worse overnight for that to happen. I didn’t tell the world how incredible you are because you’re shallow, or vain, or mean-spirited, and it  _ would _ take something like that for my feelings to change. Well,” he drew back a little so she could see him smiling down at her. “I used to be friends with Chloe, remember? And now I’m not. But you’re no Chloe,” he assured her, tucking some hair back behind her ear. “I don’t think you could be, even if you tried.”

Marinette tried to smile for him, but ended up just hiding her face in his shirt. She wanted to believe him. She wanted to believe him so badly. He just held her for a while, softly rubbing her back and occasionally swaying too and fro a little. Finally, he spoke. 

“Do you have another final today?”

Marinette sighed. It was too bad of reality to intrude, but…

“Yes. But not until last period.”

Adrien sighed too, but his seemed more a sigh of contentment. “Good. Because I think lunch is about over by now… Hey, do you want to watch the interview? Honestly, it’s far from my best, but I think… I think you might want to see the end of it. It might help.”

And since Marinette had gotten curious about just what he had said, she agreed. They sat together on the floor between the shelves and Adrien pulled up the interview on his phone. She didn’t mind that he wrapped an arm around her shoulders. 

Marinette smiled a little as she saw what he meant by ‘not his best.’ The questions weren’t earth-shattering or even thought provoking, and his answers were too pat, but the thing that really stood out was that there was no personality behind his answers. No silly puns, none of the anime references she’d grown used to, and his model smile barely wavered. He skipped over most of it after the first few questions, and then... when Nadja asked that last question, his face came alive, and she could see why everyone was talking about it. And the things he said about her- as if he believed them absolutely. She felt herself blushing and stole a quick glance at him, only to see him smiling fondly at her the way he always did. And then the interview was over and he turned off his phone. 

He didn’t pull away immediately, but gave her a side-hug before getting to his feet. Marinette followed suit, and while she missed his arm around her, she appreciated him giving her a little space, too. She needed time to think and process.

“I see why people would think you were already dating,” she said, feeling like she had to comment on it. “And I understand why you wanted to warn me, because you’re right- I would have figured it out if I’d seen it on my own, and then it really would be a mess between us. But I- I still don’t know what to say. I wish I could give you an answer right away… I’m sorry I’m such a mess,” she said, looking down. But he raised her chin again and she saw no hidden irritation or annoyance in his gaze.

“Please don’t apologize for needing time to heal,” he said softly. “It can wait.  _ I _ can wait. But,” his smile tugged up a little on one side, “would it be alright if… if I gave you more hugs and just… casual touches? Not too much or anything, I just… it’s like you’re a magnet- not that that’s your fault or anything!” he hastened to assure her, and Marinette had to laugh a little at his evident panic.

“Yeah,” she agreed. “I think that would be ok, for now.”

_ “Thank you,” _ he said, fervently pulling her into another hug. “Now, let’s go see if we have time to eat before classes start again, ok?”

“Ok,” Marinette said. They left the library the way they had arrived- friends. But now there was an undercurrent of something between them, as if that was going to change soon. Marinette found she couldn’t regret it. She might even be looking forward to it.

\----

Adrien held the library door open for Marinette, and as she passed through, he suddenly smiled brightly and said, “Oh by the way, my make-up artist last night had a suggestion about how,  _ if _ we started dating- you could get around being accused of riding my coattails!”

“Really?” Marinette asked, brightening perceptibly, “Because I’d definitely be interested in that.”

“Ok, so you know a lot of the fashion houses do contests, right? And usually they’re judged blind, to avoid accusations of favoritism- which is exactly what you’re afraid of! Well, if you entered some or even all of them, then the prizes you won for your designs would prove to the world that you have actual talent, with the added benefit that you’re not a one-trick pony. I mean, every fashion house has a different esthetic and it would take a lot of creativity, plus actual talent, for you to win all those prizes, right?”

Adrien grinned at Marinette’s laugh. It sounded… lighter… somehow, and he breathed a sigh of relief that he hadn’t completely ruined her mood for the day. 

“You’re talking like I’ve already won all these competitions, Adrien,” Marinette chided smilingly, “but I haven’t even looked at what they are this year! And as much as I appreciate your faith in me, sometimes inspiration doesn’t strike quickly. I can work around that if I have time, but… for a competition, I’d really like to submit my best work and not something I rushed at the last minute.”

She fell into obvious thought as they made their way to the cafeteria, and Adrien stayed quiet to let her ponder.

“It’s not a bad idea,” she finally said, just as they got there. “It definitely has merit, and I’m... kind of embarrassed I didn’t think of it myself,” she said, blushing slightly.

“If you want, I can also talk to my dad about it. If anyone would know how much of a barrier our dating would be to your future design career, it would be him.”

“You’d do that?” Marinette asked, her eyes soft.

“Of course,” Adrien replied with a wink and a cheeky grin. “Anything to change your mind about me. Besides, he’s probably going to question me about the interview tonight, and trust me, you do not want to be on the receiving end of one of my dad’s interrogations. Take pity on this poor boy and let me distract him, please!” He shuddered dramatically. 

He’d been tempted to reply softly, but realized that if she kept looking at him like that he was  _ going _ to kiss her, boundaries or no. So he changed the mood before he could ruin what was happening between them. Again.

Marinette snorted. “I guess I have no choice but to let you ask him. After all, we wouldn’t want poor little Adrien to be all alone with his daddy with nothing to talk about!” Her tone definitely got babyish toward the end of that, accompanied with the most adorable little mocking pout. Adrien laughed and quickly put some distance between them, heading toward a random lunch line. They really were cutting it close, so there weren’t any people in line and he got his food quickly.

By that time they had about five minutes left of the lunch period and the cafeteria was practically deserted. So while they did sit together, they didn’t do much talking and parted with smiles and a quick hand squeeze to make it to their classes on time. The small interaction reassured Adrien that Marinette actually was considering him, not just letting time pass before gently turning him down. And that was enough hope to get him through the rest of the day.

\----

When neither Adrien nor Marinette showed up during the lunch period, Alya began to hope that Adrien had done the job right and that they were now off kissing somewhere. She’d done that with Nino often enough, though less often this year. It was nice to see Nino more focused on doing in school, but she did miss his previous constant persuasions to skip this or that so they could spend time together. This year the most they did was find a dark corner for a few kisses between classes.

Speaking of… Alya nudged Nino with her elbow to get his attention, then leaned over to whisper, “Meet me by the janitor’s closet in the science wing.”

Nino stared for a moment, then grinned, tipping his cap. “Time for a little Super Penguino?” he asked. 

Alya rolled her eyes. Sure, it was a cute little app game, but it was meant for children, and she just didn’t see why he and Adrien were so enthralled by it. Worse, the first time Nino tried to show her how to play it- because it required playing with a partner- she’d given up after failing a level a few times, and distracted him with kisses. Which Adrien had inadvertently walked in on. And then, when Adrien heard the game music playing from Nino’s phone, he’d decided to make some kind of innuendo out of it. And of course Nino had to go along with it. But she loved him, and it was a small thing after all. So instead of snapping, she winked and said, “Yes, and obviously I need my  _ partner _ for that. I bet we can reach level 15 before class starts.”

Nino’s eyes bugged out and he suddenly looked dazed. Alya smothered a laugh and walked away to dispose of her lunch tray.

\----

“Marinette hasn’t shown up yet,” Mylene observed when lunch was half over. “Did she go to the library to study or something? How many finals does she have today?”

“We had one in physics,” Juleka drawled. “I probably bombed it.”

“Oh, I’m sure you did better than you think,” Rose assured her. “Adrien helped you review last week, and you seemed to have a good handle on it then.”

“Hey, where is Adrien, anyway,” Ivan asked. “He didn’t come in with Nino the way he usually does.”

“I do not know for certain,” Kagami said, “but since Marinette is also missing lunch, I would assume he is trying to make peace with her.”

Everyone at the table stared at her. Alya and Nino had already left, so they couldn’t be questioned, but Kagami seemed to be in the know, so…

“What do you mean?”

“Did they fight?”

“I thought he liked her.”

“Oh, I hate it when people don’t get along!”

“I take it none of you watched Nadja Chamack’s show last night,” Kagami said, smiling a little. “Adrien was a last minute guest, and while his answers to all the usual questions didn’t change, the question about his relationship status did. It’s all over twitter.” She took another bite of her side salad and chewed while phones were whipped out. A few moments later exclamations of surprise went the rounds around the table.

“So they’re together now?” Ivan asked, scratching his head. “I thought Marinette didn’t want to date him. Isn’t that what she said?”

“Yes she did,” Rose confirmed. “But obviously something changed.”

Kagami shrugged. “As to that, I don’t know. But considering that he did not use her real name in the interview, I don’t think any of us should confirm any rumors.”

“Good point,” Mylene agreed. “The last thing Marinette needs right now is a pack of rabid fangirls breathing down her neck.”

That reminded everyone of the possible upcoming trial by fire that consisted of unknown persons from Marinette’s old school suddenly coming to their school, and everyone sobered quickly. They still didn’t know names or descriptions, so they had no idea what was going to happen.

“I think,” Juleka said slowly, “if Marinette doesn’t tell us herself by the date of her party, we should try to find someone else who can tell us. Maybe her parents?”

“That’s a good idea,” Mylene said.

Kagami stayed silent, but nodded. She knew Marinette was trying hard to overcome whatever block it was that kept her from sharing details of what had happened, but there was no way she was going to let her friend get blindsided. There was such a thing as respecting boundaries too much. When people were in danger, it was time to put such things aside.

\----

Adrien met Marinette by her locker after school. He didn’t think that would be too much of a give-away since he and Alya often did so. But today he wanted to reassure her of something that could definitely be misconstrued if he didn’t explain it.

“Hey,” he said, just as Marinette closed her locker door. He thought he was doing a pretty decent job of not making sheep’s eyes at her, and consciously kept his grin to a polite smile.

“Hey back,” she said, smiling at him, maybe a bit softer than normal. He treasured that up for pondering later. Right now he needed to tell her something.

“Listen,” he said. “I’d like nothing better than to announce to the world that you are Ladybug. But… you’re not ready for that, and I should really talk to my father before anything like that gets out. And…,” he paused, noting how her expression suddenly stiffened a little. “There’s apparently a crowd of fangirls outside the school doors. It’d probably be better if I just walk out with Nino today, because if they saw you come out with me, conclusions would be drawn.”

Marinette nodded without looking at him and he reacted on instinct, reaching out to touch her shoulder. After all, she’d said he could touch her more, and he needed her to understand.

“I’m only doing this for you,” he said softly. “The last thing I want is for you to get scared off by a big media frenzy- and it  _ would _ be a frenzy, if twitter is anything to go by,” he added bitterly. “But I don’t want you to think that I don’t want anything and everything between us to be public. Because I do. I very much do. But you asked for time, and I already screwed things up with my big mouth last night. I don’t want you falling back on your experiences two years ago and thinking I’m just the same- like I don’t want to spend time with you in public because I’m ashamed of you or some crap like that. Okay?”

Some of the tension left Marinette’s face and she managed to smile at him. “Thank you,” she said, hefting her backpack onto her shoulder. “I might have, if you hadn’t explained things.” She sighed. “I really should trust you more.”

“I understand,” he said. “And I meant what I said earlier- take as much time as you need. This will all blow over in a few days, and we won’t have to be so cautious anymore.” 

“Yeah, you’re right,” Marinette said, nodding decisively.

“Okay, then,” Adrien said, smiling brightly. “See you tomorrow?”

“Of course,” she said, smiling back. 

And then Adrien forced himself to leave. The absolute last thing he wanted was to face a crowd of his fans alone in the frigid air of an oncoming Parisian winter, but he knew he had to. Marinette’s comfort came before his own, and he didn’t want to jeopardize the possibility of a relationship with her by throwing her in at the deep end when it came to dealing with his fans.

So he pasted a smile on his face, threw an arm around Nino’s shoulder, and braved the wind outside the school doors. The wind and, apparently, the hysterical screams. There was… a lot more of that than he’d expected, and his smile froze a little. There must have been at least a hundred of his fans between him and his car. Where had they all come from? Had some demented school bus driver consented to bring them all here?

Quickly scanning the crowd, he didn’t recognize most of them, which meant they didn’t actually go to this school. But they were certainly dedicated- he saw signs with slogans, everything from proclaiming the person’s love for him, to offering to be his ‘Ladybug.’ A lot of them, though, had images of real ladybugs with X’s or a circle with a slash through it drawn over them. Those… those made his heart drop into his stomach, but he tried to keep the reaction off his face. 

Instead, he and Nino made their way through the crowd, Nino playing the part of a partner in crime-fighting, and fending off the girls to one side while Adrien focused on the other.

“Hello, yes, yes… thank you. No, I’m not going to do that. No, I won’t tell you who she is. I did ask for privacy last night, you know. Yes, I see you, hello. Okay, it’s time for me to go home now. Stay warm, and good luck on your tests this week! Happy holidays!”

With a final wave, Adrien climbed in the car and let Gorilla shut the door for him. Ordinarily he did it himself, deeming it unnecessary for the bodyguard to get out of the car just to open and close the door for him when he was perfectly capable of doing it himself, but his bodyguard was also his driver for just such occasions as these.

“Wow,” Nino deadpanned as they pulled away from the curb. “Who knew a little interview could get them all worked up like that?”

“I know,” Adrien said, staring out the car window and feeling some of his earlier happiness fade. “It’s probably because now they know there’s actual competition in terms of who’s going to win my heart,” he said, trying to look at it from a logical perspective. The emotional side of him wanted to simultaneously curl up in a little ball and cry, but also and turn around and start ripping signs out of numbed fingers and yelling at them to grow up. But now more than ever he needed to present a mature figure to everyone watching for the least little flaw. Marinette did not deserve to have people start calling her a bad influence, even if no one yet knew who she was.

His phone dinged, and he looked down to see a message from Nathalie. He grimaced.

“I’m guessing that’s Nathalie?” Nino asked shrewdly.

“Uh-huh,” Adrien replied, tapping out a quick reply. “Dad wants to talk to me. Three guesses about what, and the first two don’t count.”

“Right. Good luck, dude,” Nino said, as Gorilla pulled up in front of his apartment building.

“Thanks,” Adrien said. Nino climbed out and waved just before entering the building. “I’m going to need it,” Adrien said under his breath.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Honestly, I wanted to include Adrien's talk with Gabriel, but this is already plenty long, so it'll just have to begin the next chapter instead. Have a good weekend!


	22. Chapter 22

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Adrien and Gabriel have a talk. It does not go as badly as Adrien expects.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This is a shorter chapter, but I felt like enough got covered here it could stand on it's own.

Gabriel was waiting in the foyer when Adrien got home, and the only bright spot was that he wasn’t standing at the top of the first landing like he sometimes did just to get a better height advantage, but rather just outside his office.

“Adrien,” he said, his tone not quite cold, “I believe we need to talk.”

Adrien sighed, but followed his dad into the office. It wasn’t like he didn’t know what his dad was going to say, but apparently his performance at the interview and the resulting media frenzy merited a repetition.

“Take a seat,” Gabriel said, somewhat surprisingly gesturing to the sunken table at the front of the room. Usually Adrien stood for these conversations. Hesitantly, Adrien stepped down to sit on the built-in bench seat, reflecting that his father’s design choices for his own office were a bit weird. Why have a sunken table he almost never used, and an elevated podium for his work? He shook the question off as his father cleared his throat.

“I’ve watched your interview,” Gabriel began, and Adrien was surprised to hear a note of uncertainty in his voice. “That was quite the interesting answer to a relationship question,”.

“I’m sorry, father,” Adrien said, when his father paused for a reply. “I wasn’t planning to say anything about relationships. It just… came out, I guess.”

“Hm,” Gabriel said, a slight furrow between his brows. Not quite a frown, but close enough. “Perhaps I should schedule you some time with our image consultant. She could get you more used to thinking on your feet or, at the very least, help you come up with suitable off-the-cuff replies for sensitive topics.”

Adrien bit back a groan. It wasn’t a terrible idea, considering the panic he’d felt at Nadja’s unexpected question, and he  _ did _ know that anything he said in public could and would reflect back on himself and his father’s company. However, that didn’t mean he wanted to memorize rote non-answers no matter how beneficial in the long-run. It was one of the things that irked him about his status as the ‘face of Gabriel.’ He just wanted to be able to be  _ genuine _ without everything blowing up in his face.

“However,” Gabriel said, folding his hands on the table. “Your reply, as it stands, isn’t terrible. This girl- I assume she  _ is _ a real person?”

Adrien nodded.

“Well, at least you avoided giving out her real name, though I don’t know how long her anonymity will last. Nathalie tells me that your image hasn’t suffered any, in fact,” Gabriel picked a microscopic piece of lint off his arm, “it seems social media is responding fairly positively to this development. Apparently people see you as a young man making his first foray into love, and they deem it… sweet.” Gabriel pronounced the last word as if it were distasteful. Despite the circumstances Adrien had to suppress a grin at that.

“That said,” Gabriel abruptly fixed him with a penetrating stare. “There is still damage control to be done. You said that the young lady did not wish to be in a relationship with you. Does that stand, or has the situation changed?”

Adrien swallowed. Here went nothing… “I talked to her today, actually” he said, trying for a calm, measured tone. “It’s true that in the past she said she couldn’t date me, and what I said in the interview is also true- she’s worried that if she and I become too close that it will reflect badly on her aspirations as a designer. But after our talk today, she said she’d be willing to consider it. But she needs some time to come to a decision.”

Gabriel slightly narrowed his eyes. “Why does she need time?,” he asked. “Have you not been friends for a while? Isn’t she the same one who won a bet with you a while ago?”

“Yes,” Adrien said, resisting the urge to act surprised. For his father to remember a personal detail from months ago, especially when it hadn’t been brought up again, was unexpected.

“Hm,” Gabriel said again, now pursing his lips. “I believe I asked to meet her. And yet… I haven’t.”

Adrien flushed. “I’m sorry, father, there just hasn’t been a good time for a movie night since then, what with all the extra photoshoots for the winter and spring catalogs. And she needs time to consider because… well, because she’s been bullied for years before transferring to my school, and she’s still recovering from that.”

Gabriel frowned at him. “Forgive me, but she hardly seems like a good candidate to be in a public relationship with you. It seems to me that she would find the spotlight uncomfortable, and since the public seems to be reacting well to the idea of you having a girlfriend, I would prefer that you actually acquire one.”

Adrien took a deep breath and reminded himself that his father had yet to meet Marinette, and that he was, for once, considering the feelings of others. Even if he was being a jerk about it. “I see what you’re saying, but Marinette is one of the bravest people I know, and if she makes the decision to date me, she’ll handle it.”

His father frowned again. “About her being a designer-”

“Yes, I was going to ask you something about that,” Adrien quickly interrupted, gaining an irritated frown.

“You know better than to interrupt people, Adrien,” Gabriel said, his voice growing a bit colder. “As I was saying, her design goals may make it difficult to convince people this is not a relationship of convenience. And I’m not just speaking about her end,” Gabriel said, holding up one hand when Adrien opened his mouth to object. “You’ve made it very clear over the last few years that you do not appreciate the amorous advances of your fans. Therefore it would be logical for some of them to conclude that this is a relationship you entered into merely to get them off your back. That impression would not be helped by the fact your friend has design aspirations.”

Adrien opened and closed his mouth once or twice. Then he raised his eyebrows. “Well, as far as I’m concerned, they can think what they want. Marinette knows the truth- I made sure of that today. Besides, we think we might have a way to convince people she’s not just dating me for access to you.”

Gabriel snorted. “I’m sure you have. Whether that idea is going to actually change anyone’s opinion is debatable.”

“Well, we thought she could enter a whole bunch of design contests, from multiple fashion houses, maybe even some based overseas. And then, when she starts winning prizes, people will quickly come to realize she has actual talent. After all, those competitions are judged blind, so any accusations of favoritism would have to be abandoned.”

Gabriel raised an eyebrow. “That is, of course, assuming this Marinette does, actually, win any competitions. In my experience they are quite competitive. And the judging can be harsh. If she were to fail, that could ruin everything.”

But at this Adrien smirked. “You haven’t had a chance to see her designs yet, dad,” he said smugly. “I might not have the creativity, talent, or even desire to design myself, but I  _ can _ tell a mediocre design from a good one. And she’s  _ good _ , dad. At her best, she could give some of your interns- maybe even junior designers!- a run for their money.”

His smirk dropped then, and he asked the question he’d promised Marinette he would ask. 

“Just how bad would it be- for Marinette, I mean- if we did start dating? Would people really outright accuse her of… I don’t know, just doing it for the favoritism? Would they accuse you of favoring her above anyone else angling for a designer spot?”

Gabriel narrowed his eyes a little and pursed his lips. “Fashion is a very subjective field, Adrien. There will always be critics who don’t care for your work, whether you have talent or not. And, as in any trade-craft, there will always be those who possess what I consider to be poor or mediocre talent or even no talent at all, yet who hold sway in the community because of who they know or who they themselves are.” 

Adrien nodded, heart slowly sinking.

“However,” Gabriel went on, “that goes both ways. Just as it is possible for those lacking talent to become known for who they know, it is also possible for the already respected to find new talent and bring it to light. It is, in fact, something I consider a responsibility. That is why internships and mentoring programs exist, and why so many fight for those opportunities, despite some of the known hardships involved.”

Gabriel paused, obviously considering. “I would say that the fashion community might scrutinize her more closely than someone unconnected with a major house that way, but in much the same way they scrutinize you. You represent the brand, and what you do reflects on it. So would your friend’s talent and behavior reflect on us.”

“Hm,” Adrien said. “I hadn’t really thought of it like that.” Then he grimaced. “Does this mean we couldn’t date like normal teenagers?” He’d been treasuring the idea of casual coffee dates, picnics in the park, and even visiting street fairs, but he should have guessed any such outings would include paparazzi.

His father raised an eyebrow. “There would certainly need to be some ground rules established, and it wouldn’t hurt for her to meet with our PR rep at least once.” At Adrien’s scowl, his expression hardened. “It is both our privilege and our burden to conduct our lives in the spotlight, Adrien. Your friend needs to understand this in full before making a decision. Of course in the future, if you decide to distance yourself from the brand, such restrictions could largely be lifted.”

That caught Adrien by surprise. Gabriel smiled a little. “Surely you didn’t think I was unaware of the direction of your studies? While I admit I would like you to take over at least the business side of the brand, I recognize that this may not be your goal, nor ultimately the best choice for the brand. Far better to train a promising protege than to inflict an unwilling son on a business built largely on foresight and passion.”

Adrien’s smile returned. “To be honest, I don’t know yet if I would like to take over the business side or not. Maybe next summer I could shadow someone at headquarters and find out?”

“An excellent idea,” Gabriel approved. “Now, back to…”

“Marinette. Marinette Dupain-Cheng.”

Gabriel nodded. “Very well, Miss Dupain-Cheng. You mentioned she’d been bullied. Frankly, this does not bode well for how easily she will be able to deal with your fans or paparazzi. Or for her future design career, for that matter. It takes a tough skin to stand up to that kind of scrutiny and not break.”

That had Adrien frowning again. “Father, it’s true that she’s had a rough time of it, but I know she’s in therapy. She’s working through it and regaining her confidence, or I’m sure we wouldn’t even be having this conversation, because she and I wouldn’t be friends. And actually, wouldn’t her experience with bullies make her stronger in the long run? Since she’s already faced something worse than having her designs verbally trashed? And besides, it’s not like she’d be facing it alone. I’m not going to just abandon her to a pack of raving fangirls, or anything like that.”

“Perhaps… if she is indeed confronting her own insecurities because of her experiences, then yes, it could make her stronger in the long run. But the fact remains that people in this industry can get very vicious. She may not be ready for that just yet.”

Then Gabriel’s expression softened. “I think you said in the interview that she was worth “anything.” What is it that draws you to her so insistently?” he asked, and for once his tone wasn’t cold and impersonal, but almost gentle.

Adrien smiled softly and he relaxed a little. “I don’t know, dad, she’s… she’s attractive, but she’s also talented and generous and kind… she’s been through so much. She can kick anyone’s butt at Ultimate Mecha Strike, and she sometimes jumps to conclusions a little too fast. But at the same time she wants to believe there’s good in anyone. You know, the bullies were really bad at her old school, but as far as I can tell she doesn’t want revenge, she just wants to leave it all behind. When I look at her it’s like I can see all the things she’s trying to do and it’s so much… I want to protect her, I guess. Help her bear some of her burdens.”

Gabriel’s own mouth quirked up at the corners. “That’s your mother in you,” he said. “Emilie was always looking out for strays… every charity we support is due to her personal need to get involved when she saw some injustice or other. She’s the reason  _ Gabriel _ is one of the best fashion houses to work for in terms of fair wages and benefits.” He sighed. “I admit that I myself am not so affected by the plight of the less fortunate, but I have kept her policies in place. In part that is because, on average, I  _ do _ get more and better quality work out of my employees. But most of it is that I wish to honor her memory.”

Adrien smiled and relaxed further. It was rare for his father to talk about his mother, but Adrien knew they’d had a good relationship. Not without it’s low points- Adrien could remember times when they were merely civil to each other, but they didn’t outnumber the times of laughter and warm looks by any means.

Gabriel remained quiet a moment longer and Adrien was tempted to ask what had attracted him to his mother. But before he could, his father spoke again. “Well. While I remain skeptical about this young lady’s suitability, I’m glad we had this conversation . Now, I expect you to introduce her to me before too much longer- perhaps this weekend, as a celebration for the end of the semester,” he said, turning brisk again. 

Adrien nodded. “That’s as good a time as any.”

“And… ask her to bring a recent sketchbook. I’d like to evaluate her skill myself.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Last night I got visited by the plot bunny, and I wrote the first chapter of what promises to be another angsty AU, in a historical setting and with a lot of politics. I'm pretty happy with it, and I think I'll continue it, but I probably won't start posting chapters here until I finish Danse Inversee.
> 
> Probably.
> 
> Maybe.
> 
> ... Ok, so I'll probably cave at some point just because I'll be excited about the "new WIP," but hopefully I can get most of this knocked out before then. Not that I'll rush it- i don't want to look back later and despise the sloppy end chapters.


	23. Chapter 23

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Marinette gets advice and then... MOVIE NIGHT HAS ARRIVED!

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Get ready for all the fluff. ;)

Marinette found herself in remarkably good spirits for the rest of finals week. Even the thought of having to show her sketchbook to no less a personage than  _ Gabriel Agreste _ didn’t have the power to dismay her. Adrien liked her. He had feelings for her, and he wanted to date her- and not secretly, either!

A few years ago, this might have robbed her of the ability to pay attention to other people or interfered with her studying, but while she did tend to wonder about what it would feel like to kiss him, she could snap herself back out of daydreams without too much difficulty. Alya and Nino talked about it without really talking about it, heavily implying things without outright asking. Marinette just smiled and kept quiet. Until she was ready with her answer, she didn’t want to raise any hopes.

That was the problem, though. She knew what she wanted to say- she wanted to say yes. She wanted coffee dates and days at the fair, and walks along the Seine, and she wanted kisses, and flowers, and cuddles on the couch while watching movies. But she wasn’t sure she wanted mobs of fan-girls and constantly coming across pictures of herself or herself and Adrien online and in magazines. That seemed like it would get old very quickly.

She had asked Dr. Fu for advice, and while he encouraged her to try a romantic relationship- just to prove to herself that she was desirable, he wasn’t enthusiastic about a relationship with a noted figure like Adrien. At least, not right now. He had some of the same reservations that she did, and his focus, after all, was to make sure that she stayed mentally healthy. One of the questions he’d posed was: how do you think it would make Adrien feel if a relationship with him was ultimately responsible for a deterioration in her mental health?

Marinette didn’t like that question, she didn’t think it was fair. The only effect  _ Adrien _ could have on her mental health was a positive one, surely. Any negative effects would stem from the people who couldn’t seem to grasp that Adrien deserved some kind of private life. But she couldn’t dismiss it entirely, either. Because if her mental health did get worse, and Adrien felt it was because of him… well, she wasn’t sure how he would react, but she knew it wouldn’t be good. And she would hate for him to blame himself for something beyond his control. So it was a puzzle.

Fortunately, Marinette was good at solving puzzles. And for this one, she decided she needed the advice of someone who was used to living somewhat in the spotlight- or at least, someone who knew what living with constant high standards was like.

\----

Kagami willingly met her for hot chocolate and scones after school on Friday, the last day of the semester. The following evening would be the movie night at Adrien’s house, and if possible, Marinette wanted to have an answer for him.

“So, not that I don’t appreciate the invitation, but why did you invite me here?” Kagami asked after taking a few sips of her raspberry hot chocolate. She smiled knowingly at Marinette, as if she already knew what she was going to ask her. Maybe she did. Marinette had discovered that Kagami was very observant once she knew what certain social cues usually meant.

Marinette played with her own cup of peppermint hot chocolate. “I was wondering if you could give me some advice,” she began. She took a deep breath and just plunged in. “Adrien asked me… that is… well, do you remember he did that surprise interview Monday night?”

“Yes,” Kagami said, actual amusement coloring her voice. “He was talking about you, you know.”

Marinette stared at her. “I- I know. Well, at least I know  _ now _ , because he told me on Tuesday, but- wait, how do  _ you _ know?”

Kagami actually laughed. “Oh, Marinette, it’s been obvious for quite a while that Adrien has a crush on you.”

Marinette blushed. “O-oh. Well… anyway, he said he wanted to try dating me. And… I want to, but… I don’t know how well I can cope with the whole life-in-the-tabloids part of it.” She rushed on before Kagami could say anything to that. “Not that I… I just don’t want Adrien thinking that it’s his fault if I happen to have a… a bad reaction to something. Do you see what I mean? Because I do still get them sometimes.” She smiled a little painfully. “It’s not his fault I’m an emotional mess.”

Kagami reached across the table to pat her hand. “You are not an emotional mess, Marinette, and yes, I do know what you mean. Largely because you’ve spent so much time teaching me what various expressions mean in different contexts.” She smiled. “So what  _ was _ your question?”

“Well, I know your mother has very high expectations for you, and… I guess I was just wondering if maybe you had some advice on how to handle that kind of pressure? I mean, I have high expectations for myself, but they all focus on designing and school work. Dating Adrien would mean that I need to watch what I say, how I stand and walk, how I react to things… and all of that in front of who knows how many cameras!”

Kagami nodded, back to her less-than-stoic expression nowadays. She’d come a long way since Marinette became her friend. “It’s wise of you to seek advice on this. Many would simply decide that their behavior shouldn’t matter- whether that is true or not- and act accordingly. But Adrien is a public figure, and your behavior would reflect not only on you, but on him as well.” 

Marinette felt her shoulders start tensing, but Kagami smiled again. “From what I have seen, you don’t need to worry too much. You have an unconscious grace in your movements, which seems to disappear if you become self-conscious, so you might work on your confidence. But you also act graciously toward everyone, even when caught off-guard. Do you remember the first time we met? When I asked you if you always hesitated? In a situation involving paparazzi or fans, that could actually be a good thing, because you are less likely to give an answer or say something that could lead to trouble later on.”

Marinette sighed a little, relaxing more. “Really?” She felt pathetic even asking the question- Kagami wasn’t the kind of person to lie just to spare someone’s feelings, even after all her hard work learning how to fit in. But Kagami just smiled and nodded, taking another sip of her hot chocolate.

Marinette thought about that while she sipped her own. It was comforting to know that her friend with the high standards seemed to think she wouldn’t utterly embarrass both herself and Adrien when they were seen together in public… but what about formal events? She knew Adrien was required to attend several, but she didn’t know much ballroom dancing and wasn’t familiar with fancy dinner table rules. About all she knew was the old rule of thumb, ‘start at the outside and work your way in.’ But how far could that really take her? What if they served something she didn’t know how to eat?

“Well,” she said, before she could work herself up over something that wasn’t even a problem yet. She’d been working hard on that with Dr. Fu for almost as long as she’d been seeing him, and it was encouraging to find that it was making a difference. “What about formal events? I don’t really know the etiquette for a formal dinner, for example. What if they serve something I don’t know how to eat?”

“You could always refuse the course,” Kagami offered. “Many people do. Most of those courses are chosen solely to impress the attendees with the host’s elevated tastes. And when they’re not, it’s still no shame to refuse it, especially if it comes with utensils you’re unfamiliar with. And wouldn’t this be good training for your future, as well? If you aim to become a leading fashion designer, you will have to attend many such events.”

“That’s true,” Marinette mused, tearing off a little piece of her croissant. “I wonder if Mr. Agreste would agree to some training dinners... If I decide to date Adrien, of course,” she added, blushing again.

Kagami smiled into her chocolate and said nothing.

\----

“Alya, what should I wear?” Marinette asked plaintively. She had Alya on speaker phone, while looking despairingly at the contents of her closet. There was an hour to go before she had to leave to get to Adrien’s house on time, and suddenly everything she owned seemed totally inadequate to the occasion. Not only was she going to a movie night at the house of her crush- who also had made it known he wanted to date her- but she was going to have to present her latest sketchbook of designs to the one and only Gabriel Agreste. 

“Why is this so difficult, girl? You have so many cute clothes,” Alya asked, half-laughing. “And besides, it’s a movie night, not a dance at the Grand Parie, and it’s not even like it’ll just be you and Adrien.”

“It’s not just a movie night! I have to let Mr. Agreste look through one of my sketchbooks!” 

Earlier in the week, Marinette had been too happy for the recent development to be nervous over that, but now… now she’d had time to get over the initial shock and euphoria and start thinking about how she could ruining things before they even got started. Not to mention that her phobia of letting her sketchbook out of her sight at all was cropping up with a vengeance.

“What are  _ you _ wearing?” Marinette suddenly demanded. “Because I can’t come wearing something cute but professional, if you show up in a hoodie and jeans. And I can’t exactly hand my sketchbook over to Adrien’s dad wearing a hoodie myself!”

Alya laughed again. “Ok, ok, I’ll cut you some slack. That would be like me meeting… I don’t know, Lois Lane, and handing over a portfolio of recent articles for her to look through, only I wrote them out in crayon. Ok, so how about this- we’ll each wear a cute skirt and blouse and flats. Comfortable and stylish but not too much for a casual get-together. Sound good?”

“Ok, but send me a pics of what you’re wearing,” Marinette said, chewing her bottom lip. “I don’t want this to look too much like a double-date.”

“Marinette! You can’t have it both ways!”

“No, no, it’s just… I’m still kind of wrapping my head around the fact that Adrien even  _ wants _ to date me. I want to date him, I’m just… getting used to the idea? And there’s already a lot of pressure on me for tonight.”

Alya was quiet for a minute. “Yeah, ok, I can see that. But,” she sighed. “You know you’ve always said that you can’t date Adrien because of how it would look. Well, what does it say that you’re more concerned with looking good for his dad than for him?”

Marinette closed her eyes and bit back a groan. “That’s… totally a fair point, Alya. Ok. But you  _ just said _ that you wouldn’t want to hand an article written in crayon to one of your journalist icons, so… What would you do if you weren’t sure about dating Lois Lane’s son, but you were going to hang out with him anyway, and oh-by-the-way she wants to see some articles?!” she waved her hands spastically, even though Alya couldn’t see her.

“Ok, compromise, then. It’s winter, and it’s cold outside. You’ve been in Adrien’s room, so you know that the floor is marble and most of his stuff is all sleek and modern without many soft surfaces. Plus, there’s that huge wall of windows, right? So… how about a sweater and slacks? You could wear ankle-booties. It’s less  _ meaningful _ in the date-sense without casting away all hope, and still stylish enough for the pseudo-interview.”

Marinette sank into her desk chair, all her manic energy suddenly running out. “Alya, what would I do without you? That’s  _ perfect. _ ”

“Honestly girl, you’re the one who wants to be a designer. I have no idea why you couldn’t come up with that yourself.”

“It’s a lot easier when I don’t have a personal stake,” Marinette whined. “I want to dress  _ other  _ people, Alya!”

“Yeah, well you can start by dressing yourself. And all my sweaters are hideous, so I’m going to have to go beg one off of my mom or something. I’ll see you there?”

“Yeah, see you there,” Marinette said, smiling. “And thanks.”

Alya hung up and Marinette rose to narrow down her choices of sweater.

\----

Adrien stood in front of the section of bookshelves dedicated to DVDs and scanned them endlessly. He had no shortage to choose from, since his father had always preferred him to buy physical copies rather than downloading or using a streaming service. He knew what both Nino and Alya liked- Alya liked superhero movies (good or bad) and anything with a mystery plot, preferably with some horror and gore thrown in. Nino didn’t mind superheroes or horror, but preferred movies based on real people and real events. But what would Marinette like?

He had a little bit of everything, and he’d watched everything he owned at least once, even if he didn’t like it once he started watching it. So he could just ask her when she got here… but what if she thought that was too much pressure on her to pick something everyone would like? He wanted to make a good impression since this would be the first time they spent time together outside of school since the tournament.

Finally, he decided to pick out several movies and let her choose from those. He quickly made his selections- a few foreign films, some generic American blockbusters, and two of his own favorites. He came down from the balcony level with the movies stacked under his arm and glanced in the mirror for a final check.

He’d decided to wear the other outfit Marinette had picked out for him that day, after that infamous tournament- the one with the green sweater and tan corduroys. It was definitely cold enough for it, and it was surprisingly comfortable and looked casual enough, but she’d been right about the sweater bringing out the green in his eyes, and he had to admit he looked good in it… he wondered if she would notice, or even remember.

Nathalie knocked on his doorframe- he’d left one of the doors to his room open just because he was nervous about somehow missing her arrival. “Your friends just buzzed the gate, Adrien.”

“Coming!” he said, slamming the stack of movies on the coffee table and vaulting over the back of his couch instead of taking the time to go around. He could have sworn he saw her lips twitch, but the next moment she was back to being impassive.

Adrien preceded her down the steps to the foyer, hardly listening to her detailing what the cook had prepared in the way of snacks and beverages.

“That’s great, Nathalie, thanks! Tell Chef I appreciate it!” he said absently as he opened the front door. Cold wind blasted him, but he didn’t care because his three friends were running up the steps and he couldn’t stop smiling.

He closed the door quickly after they came in, gasping and breathless from the cold and wind, and wow- Marinette looked amazing all bundled up in her peacoat, cheeks pink and eyes bright. She had the required sketchbook, Adrien was relieved to see, and he glanced toward Nathalie, but it wasn’t necessary because his father had already come out of his office.

He came over to the group by the door, who were all taking off coats and hats and gloves, and stood waiting.

“Miss Cesaire, Mr. Lahiffe- good to see you again,” he said, almost with warmth. “I know Adrien has been looking forward to this evening for quite some time.”

Alya and Nino blinked at him but quickly shook hands and greeted him in return. Then Gabriel turned to Marinette. Adrien quickly picked up on what he was supposed to do. He moved to Marinette’s side and put a supportive hand on her shoulder as he introduced her to his father.

“Father, this is Marinette Dupain-Cheng. Marinette, this is my father.”

Marinette took a visible breath before stepping forward and shaking his hand. “It’s nice to meet Adrien’s father, Mr. Agreste. He’s been a good friend to me,” she said, and Adrien felt his heart swell. Somehow she’d said exactly the right thing, as he could see by his father’s slight smile. 

“I’ve heard many good things about you, Miss Dupain-Cheng. It’s a pleasure to make your acquaintance. I believe you wanted to show me something?”

Adrien couldn’t really tell if Marinette’s cheeks got pinker, but he could see she was a little uncomfortable and embarrassed, not quite sure how to proceed. Still, he knew his dad was making an effort to be amiable and polite, and he appreciated that.

“Hey Nino, you and Alya know the way to my room- why don’t you go round up the snacks from the kitchen? Marinette and I will be there in a few minutes.”

“Sure thing, bro,” Nino said, winking and shooting finger guns, while Alya laughed and hauled him away.

“Shall we go into my office?” Gabriel suggested, waving his hand toward the open door.

Marinette nodded jerkily and they followed after the fashion tycoon. Once inside, Gabriel once again led the way to the sunken table and Marinette hesitated only a moment before setting the sketchbook down on it’s surface.

“This is the sketchbook I use for commissions,” she said, “although I did also use it to design some dance costumes for Nino and Alya to wear at their competitions, and those were a gift.”

“I wasn’t aware they danced at all,” Gabriel said with a lifted eyebrow.

“It’s not exactly ballroom, father,” Adrien said. “They compete in the DDR games, and only locally.”

“Ah. Yet you designed something specifically for that?” He turned his attention back to Marinette. 

“Well, as soon as I saw the way they moved together, I just knew I could come up with something that would enhance that- really show it off, you know?”

Clearly gaining more confidence now that she had a specific topic, Marinette opened the sketchbook near the beginning, and Gabriel moved closer to look over her shoulder. Adrien stood back as Gabriel asked questions about color and fabric choices, and how she’d decided on the look. By the end of it Adrien was beaming with pride in his friend. He had picked up enough design terminology over the years to tell that Marinette knew what she was talking about, although she obviously had more to learn. She’d asked some pretty detailed questions, too, and Gabriel had deigned to answer them without the usual coldness or occasional sarcasm. It warmed him inside to know that his father was trying so hard to make a good impression.

It seemed to take forever and no time at all before Gabriel was closing the sketchbook and handing it back to her with a smile. Marinette smiled back with very little of her previous hesitation, and Adrien felt like jumping for joy.

“I’m happy to say that, once again I think you’ve picked your friends very well, Adrien,” he said, ushering them back out of his office. “And I can also assure you that you do indeed have talent, Miss Dupain-Cheng, in case you were in any doubt about that. You are young, and have things to learn, but you have a discerning eye for color and the way a garment will move, and your drawing skills are adequate for your age.”

Marinette, whose cheeks had lost the glow granted by the cold outside, flushed again and she stammered out a thank you. Gabriel just nodded and bowed slightly before turning away and entering his office again, calling for Nathalie.

Adrien caught her up in a spontaneous hug, spinning her around and surprising a laugh out of her. 

\----

“I think it went well,” Alya whispered from the top of the stairs, where she and Nino were crouched behind the solid stone wall around the atrium, spying on Adrien and Marinette. She suppressed a giggle as Adrien picked Marinette up and spun her around in obvious celebration.

“Yeah,” Nino chuckled. “We knew she could do it, though. And Adrien looks like he’s over the moon.”

“Hey, lovebirds!” Alya called suddenly, standing up and waving to them. “Get up here, we’re supposed to be watching movies!”

Startled, the two looked up at them before Adrien remembered he was still holding Marinette and hurried to put her down, blushing furiously. Marinette bit her lip but couldn’t keep the smile, or the blush, off her face.

Alya grinned wickedly at Nino, who just shook his head. “You and your wiles, woman. I’m the only person on this planet safe from your match-making.”

Alya laughed. “That’s because I already matched you with me, dummy!”

Nino just spread his hands and said, “Like I said- the only one safe.”

Adrien and Marinette reached the top of the stairs then, and they all went into Adrien’s room. Nino had to chuckle at Marinette’s wide-eyed stare.

“I thought you were here before,” he teased, gently nudging her arm.

“I was, but…” Marinette waved her hand around the huge space. “I think it got bigger.”

That got them all laughing, and they headed to the couch in front of the big screen TV. Nino and Alya, who had obviously been there before, took their favorite places- Nino in the left hand corner seat, and Alya sprawled half-on and half-off his lap. They already had two cups of soda on a small side table by Nino’s elbow and an array of snacks on the coffee table. 

There was a bowl of popcorn, a tray of fruit, another of cut vegetables, a big bowl of potato chips and another of small, hard pretzels. Alya pointed out the drinks and cups set on top of Adrien’s Centipede game table when she saw Marinette looking around for them. There was a small chest of ice sitting next to it. Marinette started that way, but Adrien waved her off.

“I’ll get our drinks, Marinette. You’ve never been to one of these, so you get to pick the movie we watch first.”

“First?” Marinette asked, confused. “And I’ll take an orange soda, please.”

“As the lady wishes,” Adrien replied with a cheesy bow. “And yeah, we usually get through two or three before everyone’s too tired to keep going.”

Alya leaned over to whisper something in Nino’s ear. “Ten euros says she falls asleep on him.”

Nino shook his head. “I say he falls asleep on her first.”

Alya smirked. “I happen to know that  _ someone’s _ been stressing about this evening all day long. That, plus the obviously positive reception Gabriel gave her, equals one super relieved girl, who is going to crash soon.”

“Yeah, well, Adrien’s been acting like a freakin’ frog about this. I still say he’ll crash first.”

“Ah, but Adrien has the added incentive of finally being able to snuggle up to her. He’s not going to want to waste any of it sleeping.”

Nino was about to retort when Adrien walked past them with two cups and raised an eyebrow.

“What are you two whispering about?” he asked.

“Christmas presents,” Alya said, airily, making Nino snort. “You know what you’re bringing to Mari’s party, right?”

“Um, yeah, I think I’ve just about decided,” Adrien said, beginning to raise one hand to his neck only to remember he was still holding a drink. Flushing slightly, he put both of them down on the other side table and took the right corner seat. He found the remote and turned on the tv and DVD player. Marinette was still looking at the movies.

“So what’s the verdict, Mari? What are we watching first?”

Marinette turned and held up The Count of Monte Cristo. She shrugged. “What can I say? It’s classic, French, and he’s hot!” she said, pointing to the actor on the jacket.

“Good choice on all counts!” Alya cheered.

“Hey!”

“Calm down, Nino, I’m still only dating you.”

Adrien obligingly opened the DVD tray remotely for her, and Marinette put the disc in before turning back to the couch. Alya took immense satisfaction in the way her face flushed as she saw that the only open spot was between Alya and Adrien. She took a few minutes to get a plate of snacks before sitting down, much to Nino and Alya’s amusement. It was truly hilarious to see the way Adrien and Marinette were dancing around each other. By the time Marinette actually sat down they’d apologized to each other for getting in the way at least twenty times.

If only there’d been alcohol, Alya would have proposed a drinking game based on their interactions alone. Nino was just as glad there wasn’t. He wanted to be sober so he could enjoy- and remember- every moment of it. It wasn’t every day you got to watch your oh-so-suave and attractive best friend finally making a fool of himself in front of a girl.

Finally, everyone was ready and Adrien leaned his head back and said, “Lights- setting one.”

The overhead lights dimmed until they were barely glowing, pulling a gasp from Marinette. “That’s so cool!” she stage-whispered as Adrien started the movie.

Nino tried to watch the movie- after all, it was a classic- but he kept getting distracted glancing over at Adrien and Marinette. By the time Mondego betrayed his friend to Villefort, Marinette had both legs pulled up to her chest and was leaning toward Adrien, who had his arm stretched along the back of the couch. Nino smirked at that and turned his attention back to the tv. But when Dantes arrived at Chateau D’If and was beaten for the first time, he saw that Adrien had his arm around Marinette who was hiding her face in her hands. And by the movie’s end, Marinette was comfortably snuggled up against Adrien, who was leaning his head against hers. Neither of them were asleep, though.

When it became obvious that Adrien wasn’t going to move any time soon, Alya got up and picked Clue as the second movie- another great classic. She put it in without ceremony and Nino got sucked into the absurdities this time, at least until Alya nudged him and pointed to their best friends, who were fast asleep.

“Aw man… which one fell asleep first?” Nino complained. Alya shrugged. “Oh well,” Nino said, shrugging. “I guess I’ll owe you ten euro, and you can take me on a cheap date.”

Alya snorted. “I’ll do better than that,” she promised and kissed his cheek.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> The scene between Marinette and Gabriel was loosely based on a tumblr comic, which I will add the link to when I find it again (I've been searching all day and kicking myself for not having reblogged it so it would be easy to find). I say loosely, because I was already halfway done writing the scene when I remembered the comic existed and that the way I was writing it reminded me of that.
> 
> Thanks to [LiamNL](https://archiveofourown.org/users/LiamNL/pseuds/LiamNL) for finding the [comic](https://ferisae.tumblr.com/post/141797592601/before-using-my-work-read-my-terms-of-use-first) in question! Go check it out, it's super cute!


	24. Chapter 24

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> It's Party Time! And much fun was had by all. ;)

Marinette had just finished mixing the punch when the doorbell chimed again. Most of her classmates were already here, but Nino and Alya were coming with Adrien, and he’d texted her earlier to tell her he was running a little late. That left Kagami, and Tikki and Plagg as the only potential arrivals. Marinette hurried to the door- not that it was far from the kitchenette where she’d been working, but still.

She hoped it was Tikki and Plagg. She’d invited both of them, but Tikki had seemed reluctant when she heard Marinette’s classmates would be there, and she doubted Plagg would come without Tikki. So when she opened the door, she smiled hugely and let out a little squeal.

“Tikki! I’m so glad you came!” She tackle-hugged her oldest best friend and then turned to the handsome spanish boy standing next to her with a gift-wrapped box in his hand.

“Hello, Plagg,” she greeted him warmly. 

He smiled and held out the box. “Merry Christmas, Marinette. Thank you for inviting us.”

“Come in, come in! Tikki, just go right up to my room, that’s where all the coats and things are staying. There’d be no room to move in here if we tried to hang them up properly!”

Tikki’s smile was a bit strained as she took in the seeming horde of people in Marinette’s living room, but she dashed up the steps to the attic bedroom without further ado, Plagg following behind. Marinette barely had time to set the punch bowl on the breakfast bar that was serving as the refreshment station before they were down again.

“Ok, so, I know it looks a little overwhelming,” Marinette began, “but that’s just because my living room is so small.”

She started pointing out and naming people, giving a very brief personal description before moving on to the next. Alix and Kim standing by the pencil-thin Christmas tree (that was all they could fit into the small space), and arguing over whether Alix could jump high enough to knock the decorative bow off the top without toppling the tree itself. Rose and Juleka talking to Mylene and Ivan on the couch in front of the window, and Sabrina somewhat surprisingly lecturing Nathaniel and Max on how science and art were supposed to be two sides of the same coin, so it made no sense for scientists and artists to be at odds.

Tikki was looking a bit more relaxed when Marinette finished, probably realizing that there really weren’t all that many people there. 

“Come on, I’ll start introducing you around,” Marinette said, tugging at Tikki’s arm. 

\----

Tikki couldn’t help but notice that Marinette had positively bloomed since the last time she’d seen her in person. She was wearing an adorable pink sweater with a thick white ribbon threaded through the wide neckline and tied in a bow at her left shoulder. The sweater was long enough to serve as a tunic, and Marinette wore it over black leggings. She had a sparkly white headband, snowflake earrings,and had painted glittery snowflakes on her black flats. In all, she was looking cute and she was excited and enthusiastic in a way that Tikki hadn’t seen in years. Clearly the move to the new school had been a good thing. 

Plus, she’d made all these friends… For a moment Tikki felt the cold chill of abandonment. For so many years it had just been the two of them. But then reality reasserted itself and she focused on the fact that Marinette had invited  _ her _ , had in fact begged her to come. And this after Tikki had ignored her for months  _ and _ gotten what could have been considered a replacement for Marinette in the form of Plagg. If that wasn’t a clear indication that Marinette still wanted to be her friend, she didn’t know what her stubborn heart would accept as proof. 

So she smiled at the group on the couch as they all got up to say hello. Rose was a short girl with a blonde pixie cut, wearing a ruffly pink cocktail dress, and Juleka was a tall girl with goth tendencies. They seemed an odd pair, but were clearly together. Ivan and Mylene reminded her of Marinette’s parents- both in the height difference and in the way they were so comfortable around each other. Neither had chosen to dress up for the party.

After a few minutes the doorbell rang again and Marinette excused herself. The conversation could have faltered once she left, but instead Rose leaned in conspiratorially and said, “So you two used to go to school with Marinette?”

Tikki raised her eyebrows but said, “Yes. We’ve been friends for years- well me, at least. Plagg here missed out. He just moved to France a few months ago.”

“Yes, I’ve only known Marinette for a few weeks at most, but from what I’ve seen she’s a wonderful person,” Plagg said with a smile. 

Tikki, having gotten used to the smooth bass of Plagg’s voice, wasn’t expecting the reactions he got. The previous topic of conversation, such as it was, was abandoned completely as almost everyone’s expressions morphed into one of awe and… excitement?

The little blonde named Rose started jumping up and down with her hands clasped under her chin.

“O. M. G,” she said, “Do you  _ sing? _ Juleka, did you hear him? He’s got the perfect voice!”

Plagg blinked and said, “Uh, sometimes? I’m not trained or anything.”

Juleka waved her left hand and put her right on Rose’s shoulder to calm her down. “That’s cool. We have a band called Kitty Section with my brother Luka, and Rose is currently the lead singer, but she’s feeling the pressure what with the BAC next year, so we’ve been talking about finding someone else, either to duet with her, or to trade off on songs. Not a lead singer role, more of a co-singer.”

Plagg raised his eyebrows. “Oh. Well, I’ve never really considered it-”

“That’s ok,” Ivan spoke up. “I didn’t think I could do it either when I first started. Just come to an audition and give it a try. If it’s not for you, you’ll know.”

Rose turned around and dove into her purse to extract an extremely pink and fluffy note-pad with an equally fluffy pink pen and quickly wrote out some names and a phone number, tearing it out and handing it to Plagg.

“We’re going to set up an audition before winter break ends, because we know everything’s going to get crazy next semester. Just call that number and ask for Luka- and if some lady who sounds like a pirate answers the phone, don’t worry- that’s their mom.”

Tikki, trying and failing to suppress her grin, asked, “So what kind of music do you play?” 

Rose beamed at her, the image of cute, as she replied, “We can do covers of anything, but our original songs all tend toward heavy metal.”

Tikki and Plagg both stared at her, trying to imagine her screaming into a microphone, while Mylene and Ivan snickered at their dumbfounded expressions.

“I… I was not expecting that,” Plagg said, with an embarrassed smile.

But Rose just laughed. “Oh don’t worry. I get that all the time! I like subverting expectations, you know?”

At that Tikki laughed, too. “I just bet you do!”

That shifted the attention back to Tikki and Mylene asked, “What about you? What are your hobbies?”

“Well, actually…”

“Tikki makes the best food I have ever tasted,” Plagg said, shamelessly bragging on her. Tikki gave him a playful smack on the arm, but smiled anyway. 

“He’s exaggerating, but I do like to cook. Someday I’d like to be a chef- I actually worked for Marinette’s parents last summer and they taught me so much!”

“You should talk to Alya, then,” Mylene pointed past them to the door, where Marinette was greeting three new arrivals. “Her mom is head chef at the Grand Paris Hotel restaurant. Maybe she could give you a tour sometime!”

“The chef at the Grand Paris? You mean Chef Cesaire?” Tikki asked, feeling a spark of excitement despite herself. Too many years of listening to Lila’s tall tales had given her a knee-jerk skepticism when it came to claiming connections. “I’ve been wanting to eat there for forever, but it’s impossible to get in unless you have an invitation or a room in the hotel itself!”

“Come on,” Juleka said, smiling past the long fall of bangs hiding half her face. “I’ll introduce you.”

They passed an asian girl getting some snacks on the way to the door that Marinette hadn’t mentioned. Perhaps she’d been hidden in the crowd or come later?

“Hey, Kagami,” Juleka said in her apparently signature drawl. 

The asian girl looked up and smiled slightly, but didn’t say anything. Marinette and the three new arrivals were right in front of them now, though, so Tikki didn’t say anything either.

“Hey, Alya, Tikki here wants to talk to you about your mom.”

Marinette smiled hugely, and Tikki noticed that she was looking a little flushed, which was odd- there were a lot of kids packed into a relatively small space, but it wasn’t that warm in the apartment.

“Oh, Alya, this is my friend Tikki. She wants to be a chef, and she’s always looking for new recipes and things.”

“That’s cool,” the girl named Alya said, looking Tikki over with interest. “My mom’s the head chef at the Grand Paris. I’m Alya, and this is my boyfriend Nino. Let’s go talk!”

Marinette hurried to grab their coats so they could just go talk and Tikki followed the duo out of the small entryway.

\----

Adrien couldn’t believe how beautiful Marinette looked. She looked like some kind of fusion of elf and ice-fairy. He hadn’t seen her, or even talked to her since the movie night the weekend before, and even though it seemed they were on the same page then, enough time had passed without communication that everything felt awkward again.

Juleka brought someone over to talk to Alya and Nino right after they came in, so they quickly handed over their coats to Marinette and joined everyone else in the living room. Adrien started to ask if he could help with the coats, or anything else really, but Marinette was already half-way up the steps to her room.

Sighing, he moved over to the snacks set out and grabbed a plate and cup for himself, saying hello to Kagami.

Kagami was polite but forthright as always. “Something tells me Marinette hasn’t made her move, yet.”

Adrien glanced up, surprised. “You… know?”

Kagami raised an eyebrow. “It’s not hard to figure out, Adrien. You’re much more attentive to her than you ever were to me.”

A boy Adrien didn’t know came to get snacks of his own and Adrien flushed, both because he was embarrassed to have an audience and because he didn’t know what to say to that. Kagami was right- he’d never really done more than toy with the idea of dating her. 

But she didn’t leave him hanging, despite the outsider presence. “Don’t worry, Adrien, I’m not offended. And I’ve never needed protecting, either, except perhaps from lack of socialization and that was more a problem of too much protection.” Her smile softened. “You have a hero complex, Adrien. And while Marinette is getting stronger in herself, I believe she is the type who will always need someone standing by her to be at her best.”

Adrien just stood there with a bemused smile as Kagami walked off toward Alix and Kim. The other boy looked between them for a minute before awkwardly coming closer.

“Sorry, I didn’t mean to overhear that. Ex-girlfriend?”

“No, we never actually dated,” Adrien said, shaking off the bemusement. “I thought about it a couple of years ago, when we first met, but…” He shrugged, and put his cup down, so he could shake the guy’s hand. “Hi, I’m Adrien, I don’t think I’ve met you before.”

“I’m Plagg. I came with Tikki,” the other boy said.

“Oh, Marinette’s old friend?” Adrien asked with interest. “Have you known her as long as Tikki has? I’m sorry, but… she’s never really mentioned you,” he trailed off, frowning. “Actually, come to think of it, the only reason I know Tikki’s name is because Marinette said it at the tail end of a phone call. Sorry,” he said, wincing as he realized how that could sound.

Plagg raised an eyebrow at that, but didn’t look offended. “Actually no, I only met Marinette after Tikki and I started dating.”

Adrien stopped and really looked at him, because this time he registered the unfamiliar name. “Oh.” This was the mysterious guy from the assault video then. Something about his tone must have caught Plagg’s attention because he looked at him again. After a moment of confusion, something changed in his expression and he almost looked… resigned.

“I take it Marinette told you?”

“Not… not on purpose,” Adrien hastened to reassure him. “Actually the only reason I know anything is because she was talking to Tikki right before school the day the video was released and we overheard… we kind of figured it out from there. Again, sorry. That must’ve been…”

“Yes,” Plagg said shortly. “But this is a party, right?” He smiled tightly. Adrien nodded, getting the hint. “Right. Hey, do you play video games?” he asked, leading him over to the tv. “How about a friendly round of Ultimate Mecha Strike?”

\----

Tikki was surprised at the achievements and connections of Marinette’s new friends. Kitty Section, Juleka and Rose’s band, had actually opened for Jagged Stone once, and had a YouTube video to prove it. And Alya had picked up enough esoteric cooking knowledge from her mom to prove that she was actually the daughter of a celebrated, if not famous, chef. Tikki actually recognized Nino from his own YouTube channel after a few minutes of listening to him talk about his passion, and even told him that she had a favorite playlist of his remixes she listened to while doing chores.

But it wasn’t until she learned the identities of the other two new people she hadn’t met yet that she realized something important. Because the other two happened to be none other than Adrien Agreste- a famous model- and Kagami Tsurugi, of Tsurugi Motor fame. And as she watched Adrien and Plagg trying to one-up each other with video games and acting like normal teens, and Kagami laughing with the short little athletic girl (who’d apparently competed in and won a number of alternative sports competitions), she realized that Marinette was living the life that Lila constantly lied about.

It was such a startling revelation that Alya actually had to snap her fingers in front of her face to snap her out of it. Nino had gone off to get some punch, so it was just the two of them at the moment.

“Hey,” Alya said when Tikki blinked and looked at her. “You ok? Marinette… sometimes she kind of goes somewhere else, and usually that’s not a good thing.”

Tikki smiled crookedly at that. “So she’s told you about the bullying?” That was a good sign. Marinette tended to keep everything too close to the chest. It was one reason why it had taken so long for anyone to figure out just how bad it had gotten.

Alya sighed and crossed her arms. “A little. Enough to know it got really bad.” She shivered a little. “I… actually know a bit more than she’s told me. Her mom kind of let something slip once.” A pained look crossed her face before she quietly asked, “Did she really try to commit suicide?”

Tikki gasped softly. That… wasn’t something she liked to remember. Hesitating only a moment, she nodded. Alya cursed softly. Tikki was moved to reassure her.

“Listen, I’ve known Marinette for a long time, and the fact that she’s made so many friends this year is really, really a good sign, ok? Honestly,” she continued, seeing Alya wasn’t quite convinced. “It’s weird to think about, but she’s,” she laughed, “she’s actually living the life that liar always dreamed of!”

Alya chuckled along politely but Tikki could tell her heart wasn’t in it. “I mean, Lila would have literally killed someone to get into this party if she didn’t know Marinette was the hostess, you know?”

Alya raised her eyebrows. “Lila?”

Tikki stopped laughing. “Yeah, the filthy little liar who started all the… didn’t Marinette tell you?” By the dawning realization on Alya’s face, Tikki guessed she hadn’t. She sighed and said, “Don’t worry, I’ll talk to her and figure out why she hasn’t told you. From what I can tell you’re her closest friend now, and the fact that you don’t even know the names of her bullies is… not good.”

Alya frowned. “But I don’t want to push her, you know?”

“Ok, but there’s a point where that becomes a hindrance instead of a help.”

They were interrupted at that point by the asian girl, Kagami, who suddenly stalked over to them and crossed her arms.

“Alix just told me you used to be Marinette’s best friend,” she said, confronting Tikki with determination. “That means you have the information we need.”

“Uh,” Tikki faltered, thrown off her stride. “Maybe…?”

Kagami leaned in, eyes narrowing. “Listen, next semester there will be students from your former school coming to ours, and we need to know who to watch for. Names. Descriptions. Now.”

Plagg suddenly put his arm around her waist, making Tikki jump a little. “Ladies,” he greeted them pleasantly. Tikki could hear a note of warning in his voice though. “Don’t you think we should discuss this at some other time? This is Marinette’s party, after all. Let’s not ruin it for her, hm?”

He nodded his head over to the tv, where Marinette had ousted the players in favor of putting some music on. She looked flushed again, glancing to the side every few seconds, and Tikki couldn’t help the smile that tugged at her lips when she realized that the boy she was trying so hard not to look at had an absolutely love-struck expression on his face as he watched her. And it was none other than the model boy. Oh, if only Lila could have been there to see it…! She chuckled at the thought of the liar’s fury at seeing Marinette the center of attention of so many talented people, and romantically pursued by a famous model, no less. That became obvious when the music started and he grabbed her hand to pull her into a dance.

\----

Marinette could hardly believe everything was going so well. Everyone was talking and having fun, eating the snacks, and Tikki and Plagg seemed to be fitting in well… Alya had given her a hint that if she put some music on later that people would probably start dancing. She’d said it with a wink, sending a shiver of anticipation down Marinette’s spine. She didn’t have much confidence in her ability to dance, but she was sure she wanted to try with Adrien.

Her anticipation was rewarded, too, because as soon as the first song on the playlist started- courtesy of Nino, who had given her a CD- Adrien grabbed her hand and pulled her into a dance. It was a faster song, so at least Marinette didn’t have the intimidation factor of a slow dance to start with, but she still froze up a bit.

“What’s wrong?” Adrien asked, smoothly moving to the beat. God, could he look any hotter?

“I’m not that great at dancing,” Marinette admitted, but trying to shake it off and imitate him as best she could. 

She’d expected that he might pull her into his arms and offer to let her stand on his toes or something equally sweet and supportive, but his actual response caught her by surprise. Instead of pulling her close, he winked with a mischievous grin, and turned away. He cupped his hands around his mouth and shouted above the music.

“Bad dance competition! Worst performer gets to open the first present!”

Alix and Kim immediately whooped with enthusiasm and started trying to outdo the other in wild gyrations. Adrien turned back to her and started jigging in place, making Marinette laugh and get into the spirit of the competition as well. They had three fast songs where everyone tried their best to be the worst dancer there, each song eliminating more and more dancers who were just too good. They got interrupted halfway through the fourth- a slow song, with Adrien and Alix facing off against each other- when Sabine and Tom came in with more ice and some extra pastries from the bakery.

“What on earth…?” Sabine asked, staring at the spectacle of Adrien trying to impersonate a pterodactyl, complete with blanket cape in place of wings, while Alix attempted the Worm, while tender lyrics crooned over the speakers. Marinette was laughing too hard to respond, Alya on one side of her and Tikki on the other keeping her upright, while Nino just stood there shaking his head at his best friend’s antics.

Kim stepped into the breach. “It’s a bad dance competition, Mrs. Cheng!” he said, before cheering Alix and Adrien on simultaneously.

Tom roared with laughter and immediately declared himself the final judge. Unsurprisingly, Adrien won. His awful shrieks combined with the wide-legged, bent-knee hopping he was doing while flapping his arms eventually had even Alix conceding defeat. Tom crowned him with a sauce pot and led him, grinning and bowing, to the seat of honor- one of the barstools- set in front of the Christmas tree. Marinette, still giggling, handed him one of the anonymous gifts set in a pile under the tree, and so started off the gift exchange. 

The gift-exchange/swap took the rest of the allotted party time, but no one minded because they all had so much fun stealing each other’s presents and opening new ones to see what they were. Eventually it was time for everyone to leave, and they all crowded around the door, saying goodbyes and calling out well-wishes and thanks. Marinette watched them go with a full heart. It hadn’t escaped her that Alya and Kagami pulled Tikki and Plagg aside for a somewhat hushed conversation before they left, but she decided to focus on the fact that everyone seemed to be getting along and they’d all had fun. She hadn’t been able to get any time alone with Adrien, but that was alright. The looks and smiles he’d been sending her all afternoon were enough for now.

There was still a week and a half to go before the next semester started. Plenty of time to work up the courage to finally tell her friends about Lila.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So, a recent trend (I say recent- your mileage may vary) here in the U.S. at holiday parties is to have a gift exchange, where everyone attending brings a generic gift, and at some point everyone sits down to open them all. The first person picks a gift to open and the next person can choose either to steal their gift or open another one. Typical rules usually say that a gift can only be stolen a certain number of times before finding a permanent home, and the game continues until everyone is satisfied with what they got.


	25. Chapter 25

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Adrien runs from his fans, and runs into Marinette. Literally.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I've had this chapter in mind for some time, and the writing came quickly and easily today, so here you go!

Adrien Agreste ran, ran as he had never run before. His breath puffed in visible clouds and his lungs burned with the cold winter air he forced into them. He’d thought he was reasonably in shape- after all, his model diet kept him lean and basketball and fencing kept his muscles supple. But he could still hear the frantic, almost wailing voices of his fans behind him, so clearly something in his routine needed adjustment. Maybe he needed to do more cardio.

“AdriEN…!” One particular voice rose above the rest and Adrien shivered with more than cold as he upped his pace yet again, turning abruptly into a deserted park and leaping into a dry fountain. Hopefully he’d left the fans far enough behind for them to lose him if he was out of sight. He ducked below the edge of the basin, wishing it were deeper. Even if he laid down on the cold cement floor of the fountain, he’d probably be seen if anyone came too close.

Now that he wasn’t running, he started shivering in earnest. The beginning of January was not the time to be running around Paris in sandals, swim trunks, and an open short-sleeved shirt over a thin t-shirt. He took a moment to button up the overshirt, but it didn’t make much difference. He crouched, alternately blowing on his hands and cupping them over his toes to keep them from getting frost-bite. At least he was wearing the sandals. Earlier that day he’d been barefoot for a different set of pictures.

What a day for the Gorilla to call in sick! But it was  _ supposed _ to have been a closed set for the photoshoot, and how was anyone supposed to know his more desperate fans would break in and try to forcibly abduct him? And all because of that stupid interview. It’d been two weeks already, but some of his fans just couldn’t let it go. His relationship status was still trending high on social media, and people were still speculating not only on the identity of Ladybug, but also whether or not she was truly good enough for him. The fans that had burst in had been ready to believe anything and everything, and the fact that Adrien had been getting some rather suggestive advice from one of his modeling partners at the time hadn’t helped matters any.

Carmine Elise was a nice girl- a few years older than him, objectively beautiful, but not really his type. And she knew it, too, and respected his feelings and never tried anything more than what they were directed to do by the photographer- which he couldn’t always say about all of his partners. But today, after the last set of photos, she’d pulled him aside to give him a few pointers on how to cope with more mature photoshoots. Pictures that were meant to sell perfume or cologne, or underwear, where the main emotion required was likely to be passion. Adrien had appreciated her advice- all very professional, focused on how to get the right effect without offending your partner.

“It’s all about creating the  _ suggestion _ of passion,” she said. “Most of the time, you don’t even have to go for a real kiss, or even touch your modeling partner. Say you’re told to lean over her and touch her thigh, as she reclines back with her bare leg pulled up,” Carmine had demonstrated on a chaise-lounge that had been used in one of her solo pieces, indicating that Adrien should do as she instructed. So Adrien had leaned over, and Carmine had taken his hand and positioned it so that from the side it looked like he was touching her thigh, but his hand actually hovered beside it without touching. “If you do it like this, you don’t even have to touch her, but you can’t tell from the photograph because of the perspective.”

Adrien had grinned and said, “That’s awesome, Carmine, thanks! I can’t imagine that will work all the time, though.”

Carmine grimaced. “No, not all the time. But if the photographer isn’t a complete sleaze you can get away with it a lot. Obviously if the client asks for a kiss or a certain pose, you have to do them, but if you can, you should always talk to your modeling partner beforehand to establish boundaries. Even if it’s in your contract not to do certain things, it’s better to be upfront about it.”

\- and  _ that’s _ when the doors had burst open and about twenty screaming fans flooded into the studio- though in the confusion Adrien was convinced there were at least a hundred of them. Phones had been out and ready, and he was sure he’d heard several camera shutter sounds, even as he jerked back from Carmine.

“ADRIEN!” several of them screamed and Adrien froze for just long enough for them to surround him. “Wait, is that… wow, that must bE LADYBUG! ADRIEN AND LADYBUG TOGETHER, OH MY GOD!!!”

Carmine had somehow managed to roll off the chaise and avoid the mob, but Adrien couldn’t track her beyond her disappearance, and he was too busy trying to fend off the people pulling on his clothes and arms and even clinging to his legs, and when he felt himself being lifted, his body turned, twisted, and lashed out, seemingly of its own accord and he managed to break free, regain his balance, and sprint for the nearest door before they caught him again. Unfortunately for him,  _ that _ door- being a fire exit- led directly outside instead of a hallway in the building. He was pretty sure he’d have been able to lose the fans inside the building, but out on the streets he was too exposed- in more than one way.

After a few minutes of listening, he decided he could chance moving to another hiding spot- preferably one indoors. He hopped out of the fountain and took off again, jogging this time to keep his blood moving. He kept an eye out for a likely store he could take refuge in, maybe ask to use a phone so he could call Nathalie. His own phone was, of course, sitting uselessly in a dressing room with the rest of his clothes back at the studio. But this part of Paris seemed to be all private residences- no storefronts in sight.

“ADRIEN!”

Adrien jumped and looked up. One of the fans- a boy who was, creepily enough, carrying a life-size cardboard cutout of Adrien- had somehow cut around and gotten in front of him. Now the boy screamed out his name as if he were summoning a wolf-pack, and Adrien immediately turned tail and  _ ran _ . He didn’t take the time to plan his path, he just ran, rounding corners and ducking through alleys, sometimes narrowly avoiding colliding with obstacles or people. And  _ still _ he could hear his name being cried in the distance.

He barrelled around another corner and this time he couldn’t avoid a collision. The only thing he registered before slamming straight into the other person was  _ pink _ . Reflexively he wrapped his arms around them, cradling their head and trying to roll so he didn’t fall right on top of them. They both crashed gracelessly to the ground and Adrien quickly tried to untangle himself, apologizing profusely.

“I’m s-so s-s-sorry, are you ok-k-kay?” he groaned, as he sat up, shivering. His teeth chattered and his arm stung where it had scraped the rough cement when he tried to roll, and there was a scrape across the back of his hand as well.

“...Adrien?” a soft voice asked, and his eyes snapped up.

“M-m-marinette?” he asked, more than a little incredulously. They stared at each other a moment before Adrien scrambled to his feet and hurried to help her up too, trying to suppress his shivers. Then he flinched as excited screams echoed down the street. His frantic eyes met hers, and despite literally running her over, he dared to ask, “Hide m-me?”

Marinette’s eyes widened and her mouth dropped open. Then she blinked and really looked at him, taking in the seasonally inappropriate attire and his still heaving chest and grabbed his hand without another word, tugging him down the street he’d rounded the corner onto. By this time he had no idea where he was in relation to the studio. He barely managed to register the fact that Marinette was carrying several shopping bags before she stopped in front of a store and tugged the door open.

His reflexes kicked in again, and he caught the edge of it, holding it open for her. She tugged him through without ceremony and quickly brought him down the side of the store and away from the clear glass windows and door at the front. It seemed to be some kind of craft store, with rows of shelves displaying everything from small paint bottles and paper mache boxes of various shapes and sizes, to yarn and beads. It was quiet inside the store- not even any atmospheric music playing- and a lot warmer. Adrien started shivering harder, and his toes throbbed as they began to warm up.

Marinette pulled him in between two shelving units that had bags of rocks and pebbles of all kinds along with glass bowls and plates on one side and candles on the other. She turned to face him so fast he almost bumped into her again and had to catch himself on her shoulder. 

“I’m s-so s-s-sorry, M-marinette,” he started, only for her to shush him with a finger on his lips. She started rubbing his arms vigorously, then shook her head impatiently and put her shopping bags down to dig through them. She pulled a large coat out of one of them and shoved it into Adrien’s arms.

“Put that on, you’re freezing,” Marinette said, and Adrien obeyed without question.

“Why d-do you h-have a hug-ge c-c-coat in your b-bag?” he asked, teeth chattering uncontrollably as he thrust his chilled arms into sleeves wide enough to fit her father and long enough that his fingertips barely stuck out the ends. The body of the coat was also wide enough to be used as a tent, the hem hanging down well below his hips. She didn’t answer him. Instead she unbuttoned her own pink peacoat and fearlessly stepped into his personal space, wrapping her own arms around his waist under the coat he’d just put on. Heat radiated from her body to his, and the coat, large as it was on him, kept it from dissipating.

Adrien relaxed slowly into her warmth, wrapping his own arms around her. The shivers decreased and eventually stopped completely. He rested his chin on the top of her head and let his eyes close, a wave of cold-induced exhaustion sweeping over him.

“Adrien, why were you running around Paris in those clothes?” Marinette asked, voice slightly muffled because she was speaking into his chest.

Adrien hummed. Actually talking suddenly seemed like a monumental task, but he managed to mumble, “Photoshoot.”

“In this weather?” Marinette’s tone was incredulous and Adrien found the energy to chuckle lightly, wrapping his arms a little more tightly around her petite form.

“ ‘Was inside,” he said, his mental fog lifting just enough for short sentences. “Studio. Some fans broke in and ambushed me. So I ran.” He sighed and laid his cheek against her hair, enjoying the closeness despite the haze currently clouding his mind.

“Oh, Adrien, that’s terrible!” Marinette tried to pull away, but Adrien held her close, and she stopped. “Why didn’t your bodyguard stop them?”

Every moment of sharing Marinette’s warmth lent him a little more energy. “He’s sick today. It was supposed to be a closed shoot, but somehow they got past the security at the studio.”

“Why didn’t you call Nath- oh. Your phone is still with your other clothes, isn’t it?”

“Yeah,” he nodded, nuzzling her head a little. He was feeling better- warmer!- by the minute, but his eyes still felt heavy and he didn’t want to let go. “Hey, what were you doing in this part of town?”

“Thrifting,” she said.

Adrien frowned. “Why would you want to buy old clothes? I thought you made new ones. Don’t you make new ones?” he asked, suddenly confused enough to pull back so he could study her face through cracked eyelids.

She giggled. “It’s fun! And sometimes I come across something really rare. Even if I don’t, I usually find something I can repurpose. Like this coat you’re wearing.”

Adrien snorted, feeling like he could finally open his eyes all the way. “You mean this  _ tent _ .”

She laughed, but softly. “It actually has a really pretty lining, and I thought it would make a cute sundress for the daughter of one of my mom’s friends. She’s only three, so it won’t take much material. And then I can alter it to make a light jacket for my dad.”

Adrien’s gaze softened as he looked into her eyes, wide and guileless. “Why are you so wonderful?” he asked softly. She blushed and hid her face in his chest. He ducked his own head so they were cheek to cheek. “I mean it, Marinette. I practically run you over, and instead of being mad at me, you take the time to notice that I’m literally freezing, and you drag me in here and start warming me up without questioning it, using something you bought with your own money to make a gift for someone else. How many other people would do that?”

She shifted to look up at him again, and he pulled back just enough that she could. Her cheeks were still pink and there was something in her eyes… something he’d been waiting for, hoping to see there.

“Adrien...,” she breathed, and he smiled.

“Can I kiss you?” he asked quietly, studying her expression for any hint of withdrawal or rejection. She nodded a little and he leaned in. Her chin rose a little as her lips met his and… it wasn’t like fireworks. He wasn’t consumed by a flood of passion. Instead it felt like coming home. Her lips were smooth and warm, and glided along his as if they’d always been meant to meet like this. 

His injured hand came up to bury itself in her hair, and he dared to ask for a bit more, his tongue darting out to just touch her lips before withdrawing. She responded the same way, sending a little zing down his spine. He deepened the kiss, but carefully- a hint of passion behind it, but not too much. He’d had fantasies of pressing her up against a wall and kissing her senseless, but he knew this wasn’t the time for it. It would be too much, too soon. Instead, he tried to show her how much he respected and...yes, loved her. How much he appreciated her generosity and spirit. How much he wanted to be hers and for her to be his. He poured all of that into the kiss and when he finally pulled away, Marinette seemed a little dazed, her breathing erratic.

Adrien was now warm all the way down to his toes, but he didn’t want to pull away. In fact it took all his self control not to blurt out that he loved her. Instead he swallowed a bit thickly and said, “Please be my girlfriend, Marinette. Please. I love being your friend, but… I want to help you. I want to be there for you when things are hard. I want to show you and the whole world just how special you are. And I’d really, really like being able to kiss you again.”

A smile bloomed across her face. “I’d like that, Adrien,” she said, looking down and blushing before meeting his eyes again. “You’re pretty special, too, you know.”

Joy gave him a sudden surge of energy and he buried his face in the crook of her neck, picking her up and swinging her side to side since there wasn’t room in the aisle for spinning.

Someone cleared their throat at that point and he set her back down, looking up to see an unamused clerk glaring at them. 

“My store is not a place for hooking up,” the clerk announced, while looking them up and down. Marinette blushed furiously and almost jumped away from him- so much so that he had to steady her before she knocked into the shelves. The clerk continued to glare at them until Marinette bent to collect her shopping bags. 

“And don’t think you can be stealing from me,” the clerk stated, pointing an accusing finger. “I don’t allow bags from other places in here, and I’ll be looking in those before you leave!”

Up till then they had both been embarrassed at being caught, but at this Marinette suddenly stood straighter and glared back at the suspicious man, flushing with anger this time.

“You won’t find anything! The only reason we came in here in the first place is because my fr- my  _ boyfriend _ ,” Marinette corrected herself, suddenly smiling hugely and reaching out to twine her fingers with his. “My  _ boyfriend _ was freezing and he needed someplace to warm up until his driver could come and get us. That’s really all we were doing, you know. As you can see, he’s not exactly dressed for the weather.”

“Ah-ha!” the clerk said, as if he’d actually caught them in some kind of wrong-doing. “And why is that? Don’t you know how to dress yourself?”

Adrien had felt proud to bursting when Marinette called him her boyfriend, but he bristled at the obvious dig. “Actually, my job requires that I dress this way,” he said, consciously keeping calm, and squeezing Marinette’s hand when a glance told him she was practically vibrating with the need to defend him. “And I had to leave work suddenly due to an emergency. There was no time to change, or even to get my personal belongings.”

Marinette shot him an wide grin, and Adrien had to concentrate to keep his expression serious. Everything he’d said was true, after all.

The clerk chewed his cheek for a moment, still eyeing them suspiciously before visibly deflating. “Fine, fine. You can stay until your  _ driver _ arrives. But come to the front of the store where I can keep an eye on you both.” He turned and walked away, and Adrien and Marinette waited until he was out of sight before bursting out in nervous giggles.

Marinette smiled a little shyly and let go of his hand as they walked toward the front of the store. She dug around in her purse, pulled out her phone, and handed it to him.

“Here,” she said. “You’d better text Nathalie and have her come pick you up. You can look up the address on the map function.”

“Thanks. But don’t expect me to leave you here- we’ll give you a ride home, too,” he said, recapturing her hand. Marinette- his girlfriend. Officially. He no longer cared about being found by the mob of screaming fans. They could come and gawk all they liked. He and his Ladybug were finally together.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> And now that they're finally officially together, I can get back to making life difficult for them. Muahaha... ;)


	26. Chapter 26

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Adrien tells Marinette about the possibility of photos taken without his consent, and they do a little damage control.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Many thanks to DarkwingWolf8 on discord for coming up with Carmine's Instagram name.

“Hey girl! What’s up? I haven’t really heard from you since the party.”

Alya answered the video call promptly, which left Marinette floundering a little with what to say. They had decided to call their friends while they waited for the car Nathalie was sending.

“Yeah, I’ve uh, I’ve been kinda busy…” Marinette said, trailing off as she recalled how busy she’d been trying to work up the courage for a very possibly traumatizing conversation she really  _ needed _ to have with her friends. But that wasn’t the reason for this call. “So, I’ve kind of got some news,” she began, trying and failing to keep the smile off her face. She wanted to draw this out because she knew how much Alya and Nino were hoping she would tell Adrien yes.

“Yeah? Oh hold on, I’m at Nino’s, is it okay if he hears this too?” She leaned to the side and called to Nino.

“Y-yes?” Marinette blushed.

Alya narrowed her eyes when she turned back to the camera and saw the tell-tale rosiness. “Marinette… what’s going on?”

“Nothing! At least, nothing you wouldn’t like,” Marinette corrected herself. Nino’s face appeared right next to Alya’s and he waved. “Hey Marinette! What’s up?”

“Hey, Nino…” Marinette smiled back.

“Where are you anyway? Is that a store?” Nino’s head bobbed around a little as if he could actually see around her head through a camera.

“Yeah, it’s a craft store I sometimes go to for supplies. It’s not really the best,” she continued in a lower tone, because the angry clerk was manning a register not too far away, “it doesn’t have very good quality hardware, but their stuff is okay for smaller projects. Anyway-”

“Yes, anyway!” Alya laughed. “What’s this news you were talking about?”

Marinette glanced up at Adrien, who was standing in front of her with the biggest grin on his face. She smiled again, involuntarily, and Adrien took that as his cue to step around and join her in front of her camera.

“Hey guys,” he said, waving. “The big news is that Marinette rescued me from both a horde of screaming fans, and freezing to death.”

Nino and Alya gaped at them.

“What?!”

“Dude, seriously, what?”

“Oh, and also a life of loneliness,” Adrien added, kissing Marinette’s cheek. Marinette rolled her eyes at his dramatics, but also sighed happily and wound her fingers into his again, holding up the joined hands so their friends could see.

Marinette had to turn the volume down on her phone because the screaming was loud enough to draw the attention of the clerk again.

\----

Nathalie drove the car herself, rather than send a different driver, which Adrien appreciated. He wanted to do some damage control before announcing his new relationship to the world. After all, he was pretty sure pictures had been taken of him and Carmine, and until he could get that all cleared up, he didn’t want to muddy the waters any by going public. Nathalie would know best how to contact Carmine so he could get her on board with his plan. She had a boyfriend of her own, so he was pretty sure she’d be willing to help.

Nathalie’s eyes met his in the rearview mirror before she pulled back into traffic, and Adrien decided to go for it.

“Nathalie, has there been anything new trending about me and Ladybug since the photoshoot?”

Marinette gave him a puzzled glance, and he smiled and squeezed her hand reassuringly, waiting for Nathalie’s response.

“No, not as yet. Will there be?”

“Well,” Adrien flushed with embarrassment. He hadn’t done anything wrong, but if he didn’t fess up now, it could look really bad. “Actually, there might be if we don’t get on top of it.”

“I’m assuming the Ladybug in question is not Miss Dupain-Cheng?”

Adrien nodded and turned to Marinette. “So. At my photoshoot today I was working with another model- Carmine Elise. She’s very nice, but she and I- we’re just not interested in each other. For one thing, she’s older, and she… well, she has a boyfriend and isn’t afraid to talk about… you know, how much they, um, enjoy each other’s company.” He felt his face grow hotter. “Anyway, she’s done some more mature shoots, and we’ve talked before about how I’m a little uncomfortable with the idea of doing those. So today she was giving me some pointers on how to avoid unnecessary contact, and… that’s when the crazy fans broke in.” He paused, anxiously scanning her face. She’d looked a little apprehensive at first, but then her expression evened out. Now she smiled a little.

“Let me guess, you may have been in a suggestive pose?” she asked, teasing just a little.

Adrien heaved a sigh of relief. “Yes, exactly! But I swear, she’s not- I’m not attracted to her that way at all. But I definitely saw phones out in the confusion and there might be some pictures uploaded that are going to look bad if we don’t manage it right.”

He looked back to the front, and he could tell Nathalie was listening intently even while keeping her eyes on the road. They were going back to the studio first to retrieve Adrien’s warmer clothes and his personal items.

“Nathalie do you know if Carmine is still at the studio? I really need to talk to her.”

“I’m not sure, Adrien. It’s been almost an hour since the break-in, and the shoot was already over.”

“Well if she’s not, can you get me her contact information? It’ll be better if we both deny anything happened before any pictures get released.”

“I can do that,” Nathalie actually smiled a little. “May I assume that you and Miss Dupain-Cheng have made your relationship official?”

Adrien smiled, meeting Marinette’s eyes. “Yeah,” he said softly.

“Congratulations.” Nathalie was back to being professional, but Adrien could tell she meant it.

The photographer was already gearing up for another photoshoot when they arrived back at the studio. His assisstant let them in with a mixture of relief and anxiety, raising an eyebrow at Marinette, but doing nothing other than cautioning them to hurry and not to touch anything.

To Adrien’s relief, Carmine was still there, sitting on a chair at the edge of the set and scrolling on her phone. She’d changed back into her regular day clothes- not so different from anyone else’s really, except that they fit her a bit better- and was apparently waiting for him to show back up.

“Adrien!” she called, smiling as she got up. “I was worried about you! Those fans were crazy, huh? I hope they didn’t catch you again.”

“No, no,” Adrien reassured her. “Actually I ran into my girlfriend and she was clever enough to find a good place to hide. And to warm up,” he added, feeling the blush steal up on him.

“Oh, I just bet she warmed you up,” Carmine said with a sly smile, eyeing Marinette, who blushed as well, stepping a little closer to him. 

“Hi, I’m Carmine Elise,” the girl said, holding out her hand.

“Marinette,” Marinette said, stepping forward and shaking her hand. “It’s nice to meet you. I’ve seen your work before, of course, but I didn’t know you and Adrien were friends, too.”

Carmine smiled. “Yes, but that’s  _ all _ we are,” she said firmly, filling Adrien with relief. Carmine sometimes thought it was funny to pretend a more intimate relationship with other models she wasn’t actually involved with, but apparently she didn’t feel like teasing  _ him _ , for which he was profoundly grateful.

“I’m just here to get my clothes and things, but… I don’t know if you noticed, but those fans had their phones out and…”

“Yes, I know, and I’ve been on social media ever since,” Carmine said, holding up a hand. “I already called Sebastian and told him I’d be running late so I could quash some rumors. We’ll talk after you get dressed. And in the meantime,” she said, grabbing Marinette’s hand and pulling her away with a grin, “I can get to know this little lady of yours!”

“Great!” Adrien said, and started to head off, before doubling back and surprising Marinette by pecking her on the lips. “You’ll be fine,” he said, before pulling away and jogging to the dressing room.

\----

Marinette stared after Adrien with a bemused smile, before Carmine grabbed her attention again by pulling her over to where some chairs sat against the black-painted wall. Activity on the set was ramping up as models started coming out of dressing rooms and milling about waiting for instructions. Once they were both seated, Carmine grabbed both her hands and grinned at her with a gleam in her eye.

“So!” she said. “You must be this mysterious Ladybug character!”

Marinette blushed, but couldn’t keep the smile off her face. “I guess? I mean, yes, I am.”

Carmine squealed a little. “And you finally said yes! That is sooo cute!”

Marinette laughed. “I guess it looks that way from the outside. But I really had to do a lot of thinking before I said yes.”

“Why?” Carmine’s eyes were wide and guileless, but Marinette had a feeling this was leading somewhere so she answered carefully. There was no need to bring up her own insecurities, but she could say something about her other reasons.

“Well, I mean, Adrien is a public figure, you know? I don’t want to embarrass him, or make him look bad… and I want to be a fashion designer, and I know there are people who will say I’m just dating him for the connections, but… I just wanted to make sure that I wasn’t. That I did actually care for him, you know? Sometimes it’s easy to get blinded by things,” she said, looking down at her hands.

“Hm, that’s true,” Carmine said, abruptly abandoning the ditzy girl attitude. “And I’m glad you realize that because it’s not going to all be smooth sailing for you two. Especially when Adrien starts doing more mature photoshoots. You’ll have to be very open and honest with each other and not jump to conclusions.” Carmine pulled out her phone and opened up Instagram. “For example, exhibit A,” she said, angling it so Marinette could see. 

Someone had posted a candid and slightly askew picture of Adrien leaning suggestively over a blonde who was reclining so that the camera didn’t see anything but the top of her head and the bare leg that was propped up on the chaise. Adrien’s expression was shocked, wide-eyed and open mouthed. The caption underneath said, “Adrien Agreste caught in flagrante. Is this Ladybug??”

Marinette grimaced. It did look bad, but she knew Carmine wouldn’t have shown her if she and Adrien really had been up to something. She started reading the comments- most were variations on surprise, speculation, and eager expectation.

“Is this the only post?” She asked, looking back up at Carmine.

“So far, but I bet there will be others soon, and it’s probably going to be picked up by one newsite or another.” She eyed Marinette. “Are you going to be able to handle that?”

Marinette smiled slowly as Adrien came back, now dressed in much warmer clothing. “You know… I think I can.”

“Good,” Carmine said, and without warning leaned close and snapped a selfie of the two of them. It was too quick for Marinette to do more than blink in surprise. Carmine sat back, a satisfied smile on her lips as she angled the phone so Marinette could see the picture, too.

In the picture Carmine had a wide smile on her face and Marinette still wore the soft expression she’d given Adrien.

“Excellent,” Carmine said, then turned the phone around so Adrien could see.

“Oh, that’s a good one, Car!” Adrien said, smiling brightly. “I take it you both saw the recent Instagram photo?”

“Yes,” Marinette said, “but I don’t understand.”

Adrien held out his hand to help her to her feet and said, “Carmine’s going to confirm that she’s  _ not _ Ladybug, and then eventually use that picture to show everyone that  _ you _ are my Ladybug.” 

“Exactly. Only it’s going to be a little more involved than that. I’m also going to mention my boyfriend, and you and Adrien will have to take your own picture and post that as well.”

“Well, actually,” Adrien held up a finger. “I need to talk to my dad before we can do that. But you and I can deny that you’re Ladybug right now. That’s not an issue.”

“If you’re sure,” Carmine said, sounding skeptical. “I don’t know what you want to accomplish by waiting to go public, though.”

Adrien shrugged, sighing. “It’s just one of my dad’s rules, that’s all. He’s got to meet the girlfriend first.”

Carmine raised her eyebrows, but held up her hands. “Alright! But I wouldn’t wait too long if I were you. Everyone’s going to go even crazier now that someone’s been pegged as Ladybug- even if that’s a blatant mistake.”

“I know, and it’ll probably blow back on you a little, too. I promise, I’ll talk to him and get him to relent as soon as possible.”

“Fine. But when you do decide to go public, I want to go on a double date with you two and Seb.”

Adrien’s eyes lit up. “Oh! That would be perfect! Yeah, I’ll definitely let you know!”

“Why is it perfect?” Marinette said, still a little confused. Adrien kissed her cheek. “Because if we’re on a double date with other people, Carmine and I obviously aren’t together,” he said. He wrapped his arm around her shoulders and turned to Carmine. “Do you want a ride home- or anywhere else?”

“No, thanks,” Carmine said, busily typing away. “Seb’s going to pick me up for dinner.” She flashed them both a bright smile and then made shooing motions.

“Go! Take pictures! And be cute!”

Apparently Adrien took her literally on that last point, because Marinette suddenly felt herself swept up into a bridal carry. She heard Carmine laugh when she squeaked with surprise and clutched at Adrien’s shoulders. She looked up to see Adrien grinning down at her, and wrinkled her nose at him.

“Oh, bravo! Excellent work, Mr. Agreste! Bring her along to your next photoshoot, eh?” 

Both of them looked up to see that the photographer had finished his set up and was looking at them while his assistant hurried the new models into their places. He smirked at them and turned back to his camera, directing his assistant to twitch a fold of fabric here and remove a stray hair there. It would have been fascinating to watch if Marinette hadn’t been so embarrassed.

As it was, she was too flustered to pay much attention, and since the assistant was now making shooing motions at them, Adrien set her down and they left. When they were back in the car and moving again, Adrien took her hand.

“Are you sure you’re ok with this?” his smile was a little on the sad side. “I know it’s a lot already, and we just became a couple today.”

“It’s… kind of a lot, yes,” Marinette said slowly, “But it’s just getting on top of rumors before they can spin out of control. And I want people to know we’re together,” she said, with a soft smile. “So I don’t mind.”

Adrien leaned close, hesitated a moment as he glanced from her lips to her eyes and back again, then kissed her softly. “Thank you, Marinette.”

\----

Marinette opened up her instagram account as Adrien took the opportunity to call his father and discuss how best to handle the situation as it now stood. She found the incriminating photo in question, now linked to several others, all of much the same scene, but from slightly different angles.

As she scrolled through the incoming comments, a new one caught her eye.

**celisemodeling** Lol, you are all jumping to conclusions! I’m the other model in that picture, and I already have a boyfriend. Say hi  @sebastian210  !

**sebastian210** @celisemodeling Hi! That’s my girlfriend. Can confirm- not @adrienagrestebrand’s Ladybug. Sorry, man. You’ll have to get your own.

There rapidly followed a bunch of denials and insistence that there was something between them. Then another comment from Carmine-

**celisemodeling** Ok, so let me explain. Today,  @adrienagrestebrand and I were on the same photoshoot, sometimes posing together, sometimes solo. He was asking for tips on certain poses he might be asked to do in the future, and I was demonstrating. Completely professional. Some fans broke into our CLOSED photoshoot- which, btw, not cool- and took some unauthorized photos out of context. Adrien and I were never alone together- the photographer  @blackbirdstudio and his assistant were right there the whole time. And honestly, he’s not my type- no offense Adrien.

Marinette kept scrolling through comments, hoping to find someone willing to believe her. Then Adrien reached over and took her hand. When she looked up he smiled and held out his phone. He’d written a reply to Carmine’s most recent comment, but hadn’t posted it yet. It was what must be an old picture of him standing beside Carmine while she hung all over a tall, brown-haired guy, and the caption read, “Yeah, sorry for the trouble folks, but  @celisemodeling isn’t my Ladybug. But don’t worry, you’ll get to meet the real Ladybug soon!”

“Does that look okay for now?” he asked, eyeing her anxiously. Marinette smiled at him. “It’s fine, Adrien. And maybe this will convince more people, since you’re teasing a reveal.”

“That’s what I’m hoping,” he said, squeezing her hand before letting go. “Dad said you’re invited to dinner, by the way.”

Marinette blinked at him. “I’ll call my parents,” she said, and got right on that.

\----

Lila was idly surfing through her social media accounts- incognito, since she was supposed to be spending the winter break on a tropical island without cell service- when her Adrien alert pinged. She tapped it and waited while instagram loaded, only to feel a little shiver down her spine when the post appeared. She stared at Adrien’s shocked expression and felt like strangling someone. Honestly- it hadn’t been much more than a month, and now she’d have to break up with her fake boyfriend. And pretend to be both ignorant when her ‘trip’ ended, and then inconsolable. She didn’t mind the fake crying much, but sometimes her wounded-animal persona really grated on her. It was useful, but she did get tired of it- especially when she was capable of so much more.

But wait… someone was defending him. She clicked on the name- celisemodeling- and was taken to the girl’s page, full of headshots and professional modeling photos, with a sprinkling of a few candid behind-the-scenes shots of runway shows, usually selfies of herself with other models. In a few of them she was kissing a handsome brunette boy, and had tagged him with the same handle her “boyfriend” used. Despite the fact that the only thing you could see of the girl in the Adrien photo was the top of her head, it was pretty clear she was the girl from the photo. Maybe she wouldn’t have to ‘break up’ at all! 

But then the real bomb-shell dropped. Adrien posted to his own instagram- the notification popped up and Lila immediately clicked on it. Her heart dropped to her stomach. He’d captioned the photo with “Yeah, sorry for the trouble folks, but  @celisemodeling isn’t my Ladybug. But don’t worry, you’ll get to meet the real Ladybug soon!”

Just then another notification pinged, even as the comment appeared under the photo.

**celisemodeling** I’ve met her and she’s adorable! Good job  @adrienagrestebrand

Lila put her phone down and lay back on the pillows on her bed. Not only was Adrien planning to finally reveal his cher amie, but someone with credibility was standing ready and willing to confirm it. She might not have to “break up” with Adrien immediately, but she was definitely on borrowed time.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> My eldest has her birthday this weekend, so it'll be a while before the next chapter posts. In the meantime, y'all have good weekends!


	27. Chapter 27

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Adrien deals with a potential problem. Marinette finally tells her story. Trigger Warning! Mention of a suicide attempt in this chapter.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So, so much happens in this chapter. Just read it.

The dinner with Gabriel went well, though it was much quieter than Marinette was used to. When she ate with her parents they talked about anything and everything through the whole meal, even though her parents were tired from working the bakery all day. Her dad would crack bad jokes, and her mom would ramble on with some story about something that somehow related to something Marinette had said or was dealing with in her life. There were few instances of quiet dinners in the Dupain-Cheng household, and the last one had been right after… well.

Marinette had tried to make conversation normally, but somehow the presence of Gabriel at the head of the table had acted as a wet blanket, damping any enthusiasm or expressiveness Adrien might have had with the topics she introduced. It was more than a little discouraging, but Adrien smiled through it all, and afterward thanked her for making the meal so lively. Marinette resolved to invite him to dinner in return. Often. She had no doubt he and her dad would get along like a house on fire when it came to their sense of humor.

Adrien insisted on taking her home, and it wasn’t until they were back in the car that Marinette realized nothing had been cleared up concerning her and Adrien going public with their relationship. When she asked about that, Adrien reassured her, saying he would talk to his father in the morning. And then they were at the bakery and it was time to say goodbye.

Adrien came to the door with her. 

“Do you want to come up and say hi?” she asked, when they reached the threshold. “I know my parents have met you before, but you’re my boyfriend now…”

Adrien smiled slowly, eyes shining. “I’d like that.” He leaned just a bit closer, teasing a kiss that never came. “I also really like hearing you call me your boyfriend,” he said in a low voice.

Marinette sighed happily and leaned her forehead briefly against his before leading him up the stairs.

Predictably, her parents were enthusiastic to the point of embarrassment, and from the bemused expression on Adrien’s face, she could tell he wasn’t used to that level of goodwill from authority figures, either. But she could tell his smile was genuine, and when he met her eyes, they were full of happiness. He couldn’t stay long, so she was soon walking him back down the stairs, her dad’s admonition to “give him something to dream about tonight!” ringing in her ears and making her feel awkward and self-conscious. And from the way Adrien wouldn’t even look at her on the way to the door, she had to think he was feeling the same way.

But when they got to the door, and Adrien turned to say goodnight with that soft look in his eyes, Marinette forgot all about that. And this time,  _ she _ kissed  _ him _ .

\----

Adrien had turned the notifications on his instagram account on. Usually he left them off, and just set himself a reminder to check it once every two days or so, like he did with all his social media. Otherwise his phone would have been constantly blowing up with notifications, draining the battery and keeping him distracted. But for this he wanted to know when comments came in. Marinette was too important to him to risk being blindsided by anything.

So when his phone chirped at him, he checked it. There was a new comment from an account he didn’t recognize- and it seemed… suspicious. He narrowed his eyes and clicked on the name. A new page loaded, full of pictures of some random girl he’d never met- selfies, and group shots with one or more other strangers- all around his and Marinette’s ages.

He paged back and read the comment again.

**Cldtte87** OMG! I can’t believe you’re finally going public!! I’m so excited for you two- she’ll be thrilled! Best late Christmas present EVER!!!!

Adrien bounced his knee considering his options. He  _ could _ do nothing. A random girl- possibly a fan- being excited for his relationship going public wasn’t exactly concerning. And the comment was phrased vaguely enough it could mean nothing at all. But, while the girl didn’t come out and say so, the comment implied that she was supposed to know who Ladybug was, knew about the relationship, and was excited that she no longer had to keep quiet about it. And that… well, that implied a whole host of other things. 

It wouldn’t be the first time that someone lied about dating Adrien, or even just knowing him. He was a celebrity after all, and he came into contact with a lot of people who could read romantic intentions into nothing more than a polite smile and a handshake. It was possible some fan had deluded themselves into thinking a perfectly innocent interaction meant they were together, and Adrien was just waiting for the right moment to make it public. In that case, his interview would have just thrown oil on the flames, and they’d probably gushed about it to their friends.

Now, normally Adrien would have let it slide. Sure, it would be painful for the other side of the equation when Adrien definitively proved the fan was lying, but it wouldn’t have caused any backlash onto Adrien. But now Marinette was involved, and there was a subset of his fans already predisposed not to like her, simply because she was taking him “off the market.” If he let this slide, he was opening her up to accusations of being a home-wrecker, or stealing him from some other girl. Sadly, in that case nothing he could say would help matters any, except to muddy the issue and get himself accused of cheating and other mischief.

By the time he got home, he’d decided what to do. He sat down at his desk and opened Instagram on his computer. He opened up a new direct message to cldtte87. This is what he wrote:

[adrienagrestebrand] Hi cldtte87. Thanks for your comment! It’s always nice to be supported by fans, and I’m sure Ladybug appreciates it, too. I hope all my fans will be so supportive!

He read it over a few times, making a tweak here or there, before finally just hitting send. He didn’t have to wait long for a response. 

[cldtte87] OMG! I can’t believe you messaged me! Wow!

[cldtte87] Actually, I’m not really a fan of yours

[cldtte87] But Ladybug is my best friend, so of course I’m so excited to meet you soon! I think it’s so sweet how protective you are of her.

Adrien frowned. It was true he was protective of Marinette, that’s why he was taking the time to interact with a complete stranger after all. But he knew who Marinette counted as a best friend, and this girl bore no resemblance to Alya- or Tikki, for that matter- at all. Not to mention that he’d already met both of  _ them _ . So it was as he’d suspected- some random person taking advantage of his celebrity status to pretend to date him, and probably getting a whole bunch of attention from it.

[adrienagrestebrand] Well, sorry, but I don’t recognize you at all. And… I hate to say it, but you’re not Ladybug’s best friend. I know who that is and you aren’t her. Not to mention that I go to school with both of them. Sadly, a lot of people lie about knowing me just to get attention, and I’m afraid your friend is one of them. I’m sorry you were lied to, and I hope you and your friend can patch things up.

\----

Claudette stared at her phone screen, reading and re-reading the message. It couldn’t be true. Adrien was playing some kind of trick on her. They’d been secretly dating for over a month! Right? Lila wouldn’t lie to her! 

Would she?

She read the message again. Adrien was claiming to go to school with ‘both of them.’ What did that mean? He went to school with Ladybug and her best friend? Or that Ladybug had two best friends, and he went to school with both of them? Claudette frowned and rubbed the bridge of her nose. Lila was currently out of the country- a surprise holiday trip to some tropical island, and she’d moaned about not having any cell service at all while she was there- so Claudette couldn’t just call her. But she was due back on Friday, so she’d have a weekend to recover before school started again the following Monday.

It was just luck that they’d be going to the same lycee for however long it took to re-open their own school. Most of their friends were apparently scattered all over the city. Lila had seemed really down about it when they’d talked before she left on her trip. But now Claudette had to reconsider… well, everything. She knew for a fact that Adrien Agreste did not go to their school, and as far as she knew, she was Lila’s  _ only _ best friend. Either way, it wasn’t looking very good for Lila’s claim to be dating Adrien.

But… why would she lie about that? Claudette couldn’t think of a reason. Lila did so many awesome things and managed to have the most amazing life, in spite of her many recurring ailments. So many people liked and admired her, and she was friends with a surprising number of celebrities, even if Adrien wasn’t one of them. So… and then it hit her. Lila had been getting a LOT of attention from the boys- and some girls- this year. She’d probably made up a boyfriend just so she could get a little peace.

Yes. That must be it.

Claudette didn’t bother responding to Adrien’s message, and steadfastly ignored the sinking feeling in her gut. But she made sure to check the arrival time of Lila’s plane on Friday. She needed to have a talk with her bestie. 

\----

“Hey have you called everyone yet to set up a time?” Tikki asked, casually. She’d promised to talk to Marinette about letting the classmates in on who exactly had been bullying Marinette (and Tikki), and now was as good at time as any.

Marinette paused in the act of pouring out some juice for them both. “N-no, I haven’t,” she admitted, not meeting Tikki’s eyes.

“Marinette,” Tikki sighed. “You know you have to tell them. They deserve to know.”

“I know,” Marinette said, but there seemed to be a lead weight in her stomach. 

“Look, I’m just saying that there is a limited amount of time here.”

“I know, I know…”

“Marinette. If you don’t tell them, I will.”

“... Tikki, I… I can’t.”

“Why?”

“...” 

Tikki looked up and really saw Marinette for the first time since coming over that day. She took in the pale face, the trembling hands, the sudden sheen of sweat, and… worst of all, the blank look on her face. She got up and gently took the juice bottle from Marinette’s hand, setting it on the table. 

“Hey,” she said softly, hugging her. Or rather, trying to. Marinette wasn’t cooperating. “I know you’re scared. But these people haven’t even met Lila. She hasn’t had a chance to twist everything around for them. And they’re smart, and a lot older than we were when Lila first came to our school. I know they’ll believe you.”

“... but…” Marinette said in a small voice. “It’s so stupid, Tikki. I called Lila out once years ago and she’s never let it go! Who would believe anyone could hold a grudge for so long? It doesn’t make sense,” she finished, sounding utterly defeated. Tikki felt a few spots of warm wetness on her shoulder and hugged her tighter.

“They  _ already _ believe you,” Tikki said firmly. “You just have to give them the chance to prove it to you. And Plagg and I will be there to back you up.”

\----- 

Friday morning, Marinette paced around her living room, alternately crossing her arms and wringing her hands convulsively.

“It’ll be ok, Marinette,” Tikki gently soothed from the couch. “You know it will.” Plagg was also there, having arrived early with Tikki to make sure Marinette didn’t chicken out at the last minute, but he stayed quiet, just sitting with his arm around his girlfriend.

Marinette whimpered a little, unable to articulate why she was so anxious. Her friends and classmates would be there shortly and she was going to tell them all about Lila, and then… well. She honestly didn’t know what to expect. She feared one reaction and couldn’t quite believe in the other. She knew she should trust her friends and expect the best from them, but… 

Someone knocked on the door. Marinette felt a sudden surge of nausea. She swallowed convulsively and stared at the door, frozen. She should go open it. Another knock sounded, and Marinette looked at Tikki, silently begging for help. Tikki sighed, but got up to open the door.

It was Adrien, and he’d brought Alya and Nino as well. Marinette was still standing frozen in the middle of the living room, and as soon as she met his eyes, Adrien hurried over and wrapped her up in a hug.

“It’s okay,” he murmured, “I’m here, you’re safe.” Slowly Marinette relaxed, letting herself drift for a few moments before she had to face them all. When she opened her eyes again, everyone was there, talking quietly amongst themselves. She realized she’d fisted her hands in Adrien’s overshirt and let go, feeling the slight resistance of tendons that had been tensed too long. She smoothed her hands over the wrinkles in his shirt and looked up. He gave her a soft smile, caressing her cheek. She managed to smile back. But when he turned away to find a seat, all her anxiety returned and her jaw suddenly felt wired shut.

People began to notice that Marinette was standing alone in the middle of the space and quieted down, looking at her expectantly. Marinette swallowed. How? How could she…?

Her eyes scanned the faces before her, looking for something, anything, to give her the courage she needed. Suddenly Tikki’s face stood out from the others. Of course. Tikki had been there from the beginning. She could tell Tikki because Tikki already knew. She’d believe her when she spoke the names, related the events. No matter what, at least Tikki would believe her.

Slowly, Marinette took a breath and began.

“You all know that I was bullied before, and some of you know that I used to go to the lycee they just shut down. And all of you are worried about what’s going to happen next semester, whether any of my bullies will suddenly be going to school with me again. You’ve asked me for names, for descriptions and… I haven’t given them. It’s not because I don’t want to, it’s because… I’m scared. I’m scared of what will happen. Because the bullies weren’t the only problem. The real problem was who the bullies believed.”

“We met Lila Rossi in ecole maternelle when I was eleven. She was a new student, just moved from Italy- her mother was an ambassador, or that’s what she told us. She often spoke of going to the embassy dinners and meeting important government officials and representatives from other countries. And then on the weekends she always had something fun to do- going to Disneyland, or concerts, or having lessons with famous artists and musicians. She never seemed to have time to go to anyone’s house to just play, but we were all in awe of her wonderful life.”

She shrugged. “We were all young and stupid and there didn’t seem to be any reason not to believe her.” She took a deep breath and continued.

“One weekend, the whole class had planned to meet at the pool for a swim party. Lila said she couldn’t go- she was going to meet with Prince Ali of Achu because he’d asked her for some advice on a children’s charity. She was leaving early that Friday morning, so I volunteered to bring the homework for that day to her house so she wouldn’t have to wait until Monday to get it. When I got there, I expected that I would just slip the homework through the mail slot and that would be the end of it, but I decided I would knock first, just in case. And her mother opened the door. She asked what I was doing there, and I told her I was bringing Lila her homework since she’d had to miss school because of her trip. A-and her mother, she just… looked so  _ disappointed. _ ”

Marinette closed her eyes and cleared her throat. “She called Lila out from her room and started lecturing her, asking how she could lie to her friends again and again, especially when she was  _ grounded _ for lying in the first place. I.. I didn’t know what to do, I just stood there, witnessing it all. Lila… she looked furious. She just kept glaring at me, like it was my fault. Eventually, her mom wound down, took the homework from me and told me she was very sorry and to go home. And it wasn’t until I got home that I really realized that Lila had  _ lied- _ about the trip to Achu, and probably about being in school that day. She didn’t want to have to tell everyone she was grounded, and that’s why she couldn’t go to the pool party.”

“It’s stupid, right? A stupid little lie, and at first, I didn’t really understand. I thought, ok, Lila lied so she wouldn’t have to look bad, that’s fine. She’ll probably admit everything on Monday when I tell our friends she was really grounded, and things will go back to normal. I wasn’t going to be mean about it or anything, but I didn’t want her to get away with lying either, especially since she’d been grounded for that in the first place. She was my friend- I didn’t want her to get into any more trouble, and I knew all our friends would understand.”

Marinette opened her eyes to scan the faces of her friends. Most of them were listening quietly, a few had slight frowns, as if they were confused about something. Alya and Nino smiled encouragingly, Tikki nodded when Marinette met her eyes, and Adrien… Adrien’s eyes were so full of sympathy that Marinette almost started crying.

“But that’s not what happened. On Monday when I got to school, Lila was already there, and she was telling everyone about her amazing trip and how Prince Ali had been stumped on what to do with the charity until she had spoken up with an idea. And then she pulled out a necklace and claimed he’d given it to her as a thank you for her help. It wasn’t anything special or expensive, in fact, I remember thinking it looked kind of cheap and ugly, but all our friends admired it and believed her story without question. I just kind of stood there- I didn’t know what to do until Lila turned to me. She held out the necklace and asked if I didn’t admire it, and wasn’t it so nice of the Prince to gift it to her?”

Marinette closed her eyes again. This part was branded into her memory, that smug glint in Lila’s eye when Marinette tried to call her out, like she was watching Marinette dig herself deeper and deeper into a pit.

“So I… I called her out. I insisted that I’d seen both her and her mother at their apartment that day after school when I dropped off the homework. Lila denied it, looking so confused. None of our friends really knew what to think. There I was, insisting that Lila had gotten the homework and been home all weekend, and Lila, with her ‘gift from the Prince’ right there in her hand, insisting the opposite. I was only eleven, I didn’t know what to do, except to insist that I was right and she was wrong. And I was starting to get angry, too. Lila had been grounded for lying, and lying wasn’t right, and there she was, continuing to lie to all our friends, and making  _ me _ out to be the liar instead.”

“The teacher came into the room before things really got out of control, and by the time the day was over, everyone had pretty much shrugged it off. Even I thought that things would go back to normal. But from that day on, Lila wasn’t my friend anymore. She started being mean to me- little things like shoving me on the playground and ignoring me whenever I spoke up in a group of our friends. It took a couple of months, but I started noticing that our mutual friends were avoiding me. Tikki can back me up here- Lila was saying things behind my back, telling people that I had done or said unkind things. Whenever there was a project due in class, something would always happen to mine- usually right before we were due to present. Once or twice Lila even blatantly sabotaged my work in front of everyone, saying that it was payback for something I’d supposedly done to her.”

“And… and that’s how things went. For years. Lila kept claiming I was harassing her, or messing up her work, that I was just jealous and couldn’t handle the fact that her life was so great. And people believed her. They believed her so much and so often that…” Marinette really did tear up, her voice breaking, “that when she stole my sketchbooks and passed off  _ my _ designs as  _ hers… _ ”

She sobbed a little, swiping at her eyes, frustrated at her inability to control herself. And then Tikki stood up and walked over, wrapping an arm around her.

“Marinette’s sketchbooks weren’t just stolen. A lot of them were destroyed before one just disappeared one day. And the next week, Lila walks into school and everyone is complimenting her on the jumpsuit she’s wearing. And Lila is acting easy-breezing, saying it’s just something she whipped up over the weekend. But I’ve been Marinette’s friend a long time, I’d seen and heard Lila badmouthing Marinette when I  _ knew _ she hadn’t done any such thing- and I recognized the jumpsuit. I saw the design for it, and I knew it had been in the sketchbook that disappeared. Marinette tried to call her out on it, insisting it was her design and that there was a special detail hidden in it that only she knew about, and I backed her up. And I swear, Lila got a positively gleeful look on her face. She pointed out the design detail and damn if she hadn’t changed it. And then she had the audacity to ask how and why  _ Marinette _ knew about it. Had she been spying? Trying to steal  _ Lila’s _ designs?”

It was deathly quiet in the living room. Marinette wiped her nose and said, “Everyone turned on me. Well, everyone but Tikki. Before, people were at least willing to talk to me about school stuff, and if I sat at their table at lunch, they’d just ignore me. But from then on…” She shook her head, a few more tears escaping.

Tikki squeezed her shoulders and sat back down. Marinette felt like collapsing but there was a little more to tell before she could stop. She couldn’t find the strength to lift her eyes, though, staring at the rug as if it held all the answers. She went on, not even noticing that her tone had changed from a somewhat distressed normal, to a flat monotone.

“After that, Lila seemed to change her tune. She stopped bullying me directly and relied on bad-mouthing me to everyone else, getting other people to do her dirty work. Honestly, she’d be sweet as sugar to my face, and then turn around and accuse me of every kind of horrible action to her friends. At first everything stayed the same- people either ignored me or insulted me, messed with my stuff, and sometimes tripped or pushed me in the halls, but it was never  _ Lila _ doing it. It got really bad last year.” She started trembling. “I… I don’t know  _ what _ Lila told them, but it must have been really bad, because people just… started  _ hating _ me. They’d corner me in places where no one could see what was going on and,” she shrugged, “and attack me. It wasn’t ever bad enough to cause permanent damage, b-but… but they’d accuse me of bullying  _ her _ just because I was jealous. And they’d tell me I deserved it for being such an awful person. I tried to record them, I tried going to the teachers and the principal, but… they all accused me of making things up, of doctoring the video and audio, and said that I should stop trying to get people into trouble and focus on my schoolwork.” 

Marinette stopped, lips trembling. This was the part she was most ashamed of. “After two weeks of being beaten up every day, I… I just wanted it to stop. But every time, they’d tell me that until I stopped bullying Lila they’d keep beating me up. So...,” she swallowed and shot a guilty, apologetic look toward Adrien, too quick to register the expression on his face. “I took a bottle of sleeping pills my mom sometimes uses, and… I took more than I should. I just… I couldn’t stop doing something I wasn’t doing in the first place, and-” she cut herself off, trying not to allow the damaging thoughts that had led her to that decision in the first place. But... 

Two weeks. That’s all it had taken to break her completely, and she knew there were people living worse lives and still managing to hang on. She tried to thrust that thought away. She knew it didn’t matter. Months of therapy helped her to see that trauma is trauma is trauma and trying to say that one was worse than the other was inherently damaging. And while she wasn’t brave enough to look at anyone after admitting what she’d done, at least it was finally out. Marinette calmed a little, wiping the tears away, though she stayed hunched into herself.

“I woke up in the hospital and... after that my parents pulled me out of school. They put me in counseling, I finished the school year online and… and that’s all.”

Again, there was total silence. Marinette kept her eyes firmly on the floor, afraid of what she might see if she looked up. 

“It’s not quite all,” Tikki said, quietly. “When Marinette didn’t come back to school this year, Lila was furious. And since I’d never turned my back on Marinette like everyone else, she targeted me instead. I’d never been the true target before, although I stepped in to help Marinette a lot and got caught in the crossfire. That was bad enough, but I didn’t know how bad it really was until they all focused on me. Lila’s got… I wouldn’t really call them friends, even though that’s what they call themselves. They’re more like, oh, cult members- blinding believing the leader and doing what the leader says without question. Most of the kids at my school are cowards or just don’t care, but the point is that if any of Lila’s followers come to your school, they will be absolutely convinced that Marinette is a bad person. And they  _ will _ try to convince you all of the same.”

Marinette couldn’t help it, she started shaking. Suddenly she found herself surrounded, folded into strong arms and held, while others patted her on the back or just touched her shoulder or head. And she lost it. She sobbed into Adrien’s chest, clutching him desperately because how could she not? She was so afraid it was going to happen all over again, and if she lost everyone a second time… she wasn’t sure she could recover again.

\----

Adrien held Marinette tightly, letting her cry, and trying to keep his rage locked down. Her story was heartbreaking, and all the more so because it started with such a petty little thing. A liar who didn’t like being called out- couldn’t admit the truth, even when confronted by it. A liar who moved on from lying to manipulation, twisting the truth and pulling the wool even more firmly over everyone’s eyes and destroying an innocent, good-hearted girl in the process. And from what Tikki had said, she’d enjoyed it. Adrien breathed slowly, in and out, holding his girlfriend and reminding himself that if not for Lila Rossi, he would never have met Marinette until years later. But then he remembered that if not for Lila Rossi, he might never have met Marinette _at all_. So he silently vowed that if he ever met Lila Rossi, she would find out exactly how Marinette had felt for all those years.

And with that his eyes opened and found that Plagg was looking directly at him- and his own rage was mirrored in those eyes. Plagg nodded once, and Adrien knew that when the time came, all he would have to do was ask and Plagg would help with anything he needed.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So. That happened.
> 
> Next chapter- school starts! Yay!


	28. Chapter 28

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> The gang decide how to tackle the problem of potential bullies. Adrientte reigns.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Seriously, there is so much fluff. Lint rollers will be required.

Adrien sat on the couch, Marinette snuggled up against him, and listened to the others talk strategy. Most everyone had left after Marinette had calmed down enough to stop crying and they were all assured she knew that they weren’t going to abandon her on just anyone’s say-so. 

But Kagami and Adrien refused to leave, and since Alya didn’t want to go either and Nino had gotten a ride with Adrien, they both stayed, too. Tikki and Plagg had stuck around as well, and Alya and Kagami currently had an old yearbook spread open on their laps while Tikki pointed out the pictures of people who couldn’t be trusted when it came to Marinette.

Marinette seemed to be ignoring it all, just resting against him with her head on his shoulder and eyes closed, but Adrien knew she wasn’t asleep, and was probably listening to everything going on.

He wanted to join the conversation eventually, but at the moment it felt like he and Marinette were in their own little bubble, and he wasn’t about to pop that bubble if it meant she felt comforted and secure. It’d been the hardest thing not to stand beside her while she told her story, but she’d specifically asked him not to. He didn’t know why, he was just glad she was letting him comfort her now. He lazily pulled his fingers through her hair, and just breathed, and she breathed with him. He was tempted to steal a kiss, but… not in front of their friends. Later.

He did want to get his hands on that yearbook. He had to make absolutely certain he could recognize Lila Rossi if she ever crossed his path. He wasn’t going to take any chances that she might fool him into thinking her anything but a conniving little b-... he cut that thought off, because it was sure to raise his blood pressure if he kept thinking about it. Instead he focused on how good it felt to snuggle his girlfriend and subconsciously pulled her a little tighter against him. 

Marinette stirred and he felt a little pang of disappointment. Was she going to pull away now? Noooo, Adrien wanted more snuggles! But to his relief, she didn’t, merely shifting position so there was even more contact between them by draping her arm over his chest. If he’d been a cat, he would have started purring. While one hand continued to play with her hair, his other rose to caress the smooth skin of her arm. He sighed, completely content for the moment.

Which, of course, was why Marinette chose that moment to stir again and sit up. Adrien immediately missed her warmth, but didn’t make more than a token effort to keep her pressed up against his side. She sighed and smiled at him, raising heavy eyelids to look at him.

“I’m sorry for collapsing on you,” she said.

“Don’t be,” Adrien said, returning her soft smile. “I liked it. I hope it helped.” He didn’t mention how it had affected him to hear her talking about how Lila had actually driven her to attempt suicide and how he’d probably gotten as much comfort from the physical contact as she had. He couldn’t bear to think about a world where Marinette Dupain-Cheng no longer existed.

“It did,” she said, looking down. “I’m… I’m sorry I didn’t tell you before.” She didn’t mention anything specific, but Adrien knew what she was referring to. He had a pretty good idea about when that suicide attempt happened. After all, he’d heard a lot about her bullies over the years as Chat Noir. So when she suddenly got a lot quieter about that aspect of her life, and then stopped talking about it entirely, he’d been concerned, and asked. And she’d said that she didn’t want to talk about what happened at school anymore. So he’d dropped it. 

Only then she’d disappeared entirely for about a month, and though he’d sent her increasingly urgent messages over that month, she’d only replied to the last one he’d sent her, saying that she wasn’t going to that school anymore and her parents had put her into counseling. Her counselor had suggested taking a break from all online activities for a while, so that’s why she hadn’t been responding to his messages. He’d been honestly relieved. If he’d only known the real reason behind that… well, he didn’t really know what he would have done. Probably tried to find her in real life so he could be there for her.

“We were friends online,” he said now. “No matter how much you trusted me, I’m not surprised you couldn’t tell me the worst. After all, you didn’t even tell your own family.” He sighed, reaching up to touch her cheek. “But I care about you. And I’m glad you don’t have to worry about any of that anymore.” 

Marinette leaned her head into his hand, giving his palm a little kiss, and Adrien felt his heart give a few hard thumps before settling back into its usual rhythm. How did this girl have the ability to turn him into mush at any given moment? Then she sighed and he drew his hand away before his pancreas gave out from pure sugar overload. She picked at a few fuzzies on her sweater.

“But… if they’re at school with me- us- again...”

“No buts. In case you haven’t noticed, none of  _ us _ are going to let  _ them  _ anywhere near you.” He nodded to the four on the other end of the sectional couch, still poring over the yearbook. “If I have to, I will absolutely make up some kind of disability for you that will require a canine companion, and then train that dog to attack those people on sight.”

Marinette rewarded him with a giggle, capturing his hand and playing with the fingers. “Honestly, I would love to see that.” Adrien’s heart swelled with pride and affection as her little hands sent all kinds of tingles up his arm. 

“I don’t think the dog idea’s going to work, though, dude,” Nino spoke up. “I mean, you’d have to go through all the paperwork and get the dog in the first place, and then training would eat up most of the semester.”

Adrien chuckled. “I know, I know, I was just using it as an example. Now, what we  _ could _ do would be to post all this to our social media accounts. I bet if I did it, it would go viral instantly and hey, presto! Everyone suddenly hates Lila Rossi. And all her goons, too.”

Kagami smiled. “Well, if she’s so interested in meeting the rich and famous, perhaps I could give her a personal fencing demonstration? I’m sure she wouldn’t pass up the opportunity to act as my target. After all, she could brag about it later.”

Tikki laughed along with Nino and Alya and Adrien smiled at the smirk on Plagg’s face- he hadn’t seen Kagami fence in person, but he might have seen a video or two on youtube and was probably imagining Lila skewered six ways from Sunday. Marinette stopped playing with his hands and turned to face all of them.

“Hey, I could compile a set of truly awful songs and remixes, name it after Lila, and put it online,” Nino offered. 

Plagg snickered. “I’m sure I could get my hands on more durian fruit,” he said, causing Tikki to snort for some reason. Adrien wasn’t sure what durian fruit was but it must be something nasty to get that reaction.

“And I can’t wait to get started on debunking all those phony charities and celebrity relationships you were telling me about, Tikki,” Alya added. “Once I’ve got everything cross-referenced and tripled checked, there won’t be any way she can lie her way out of the expose I’ll write.”

“But don’t forget the goons,” Adrien admonished. “I’d really like to arrange something special just for them. What if we introduce them to Anansi, Alya?” Alya’s older sister had a name when it came to the Parisian MMA circuit. She was ruthless and precise. She didn’t win all her fights by any means, but against a pack of untrained youths? It would be a bloodbath.

“Oooh, I  _ like _ that idea,” Alya said, eyes brightening significantly.

Adrien suddenly realized Marinette was holding his hand very tightly and turned to smile at her, sure she would appreciate the idea as well. But he was shocked to see that she was crying. And from the look on her face she wasn’t crying from happiness. 

He slipped off the edge of the couch and crouched before her, holding both her hands. Everyone stopped talking, looks of concern replacing their previous glee. 

“Hey,” Adrien said softly, “what’s wrong?”

Marinette shook her head as tears continued to roll down her cheeks.

“Hey, come on,” he urged. “Talk to us.”

“I,” Marinette choked out. “I don’t  _ want _ you to turn into bullies! Not for me.”

“What?” Adrien asked, genuinely confused. Marinette huffed and tugged a hand free so she could wipe her face. 

“I don’t like the way this is going,” she said, voice still a little choked, but more composed. “I know you’re all probably just joking or something, but… it’s not fair to them.”

Adrien bit his lip, conscious of the fact that he hadn’t really been joking, and more than a little confused by what she meant. 

“Marinette.” Kagami’s flat voice broke in on their little interlude. “You cannot win a war by being fair.”

Marinette heaved a sigh, closing her eyes and frowning a little. Then she turned away from him entirely and scooted over to sit next to Kagami instead. She took one of Kagami’s hands and held it between her own.

“Kagami,” she said quietly. “I appreciate your knowledge of tactics and strategy, but you’re forgetting something.”

“And what is that?”

“That you- all of you, Tikki, Plagg, Alya, Nino, Adrien- have a lot in common with those people who used to beat me up.”

Adrien tensed at that, sitting bolt upright, every muscle screaming with denial of that comparison. He could see similar physical reactions from the others as well. But Marinette just sat there, chin trembling a little, waiting for their response.

“W-what?” Kagami sounded breathless, but whether from anger or confusion or denial, he couldn’t tell.

“Girl, come on…” Alya started, clearly about to start a tirade, and Nino looked disgusted. Tikki, oddly enough, only looked resigned, while Plagg wore a poker face Adrien couldn’t read.

“I mean it, Alya. Look- I love that you all want to protect me, that you get so angry you want to get even, but… that’s exactly what my bullies felt every time they came after me. In their eyes they were protecting a friend, someone they thought of as vulnerable and innocent. And no, I’m not saying Lila really was these things, or that I deserved any of it, or that they shouldn’t be held accountable, but… I don’t want to see you all turn into bullies because of me.” She shook her head, two more tears tracing a path down her cheeks. Adrien felt like he’d been punched in the gut. He hadn’t considered how their, in his mind, completely justified plans would be seen by an outsider. It really would look like they were the bullies to someone who didn’t know the whole story.

“I was a victim- unlike Lila I’m not lying about that- and I don’t want to be one again, but I’ve been through enough therapy that I don’t want revenge anymore- at least, not most of the time. I just want them to leave me alone. In the best case scenario, they’ll realize they were wrong about me, and go on to lead better, more thoughtful and discerning lives. And of course, ideally Lila would leave France entirely so I never have to see her again. And if that happened to be in a cloud of shame, with all her lies revealed, I definitely wouldn’t complain! But right now I just want to move on.”

Kagami sighed. “Truly?”

Marinette nodded, releasing her hand and meeting the rest of their eyes one by one. Her eyes pleaded for understanding. “I know how angry you are for me, and I know it means you care. But I can’t let you do things you’ll get into real trouble for- things that I’m sure you’ll regret later on.”

Adrien and Plagg shared another brief glance, and despite his new understanding, Adrien saw the same utter rejection of that sentiment as he felt. Lila Rossi and her goons  _ deserved _ to feel the same pain they’d caused Marinette, and if he could be part of making that happen, he was sure he would never regret it. He stared at the carpet, mentally reviewing what she’d said, looking for some kind of loophole.

Glancing up briefly, he noted that Alya and Kagami also looked reluctant, and that Nino looked a little ashamed. 

“We’re sorry, dudette,” Nino said. “You’re right. Maybe they do deserve everything we said and more, but… I can see how it kinda makes us like them. But hey- we don’t have to do any of that to keep you safe. All we have to do is make sure they can’t get to you, right?”

Alya crossed her arms, but nodded. “That’s true. And it should be easy enough once we show everyone the pictures of who to watch for. I can arrange a schedule that will make sure you’re never alone at school, and that should do the trick.”

Kagami didn’t squirm- she never squirmed- but she gave the impression of intense disagreement, and finally she spoke up. “I suppose you have a point, Marinette, but I don’t like leaving the field open like this. Even if they can’t approach you, there is nothing to stop them from spreading evil rumors. The fact is,  _ we _ know you, but most of the students at our school don’t.”

Adrien frowned at his girlfriend, noting how the occasional tear still slipped out. Despite the change in tone, she was still having a hard time with this conversation. Abruptly he stood and held his hand out to her.

“Come on,” he gently urged, when she looked up at him confused. “You’re exhausted, and to be honest, you don’t really need to be here for this.”

Tikki leaned over the back of the couch to gently grasp Marinette’s shoulder when she pouted and didn’t immediately get up.

“He’s right,” Tikki said. “You need a nap before you can tackle this with a clear head. Go on- I promise you won’t be hearing any plans you don’t like when you wake up.”

Adrien quickly hid a smirk at the way she’d phrased that and waited until Marinette reluctantly put her hand into his. He pulled her up off the couch, and then followed her up the stairs to her room. Once they were alone, he wiped away the remains of her last few tears. 

Her eyes closed and she tilted her head back as his hands slid, almost without thinking, into her hair. He couldn’t ignore that blatant invitation- he leaned down and kissed her gently. She was so beautiful, inside and out.

Marinette didn’t pull away immediately, but when she did, her hands came up to grasp his arms as he tried to step back as well.

“I’m sorry for falling apart again.”

Adrien just kissed her forehead in answer. 

“Stay with me?” Marinette’s eyes fluttered open and she bit her bottom lip. “Please? Just until I fall asleep?”

Adrien smiled at the thought of her even having to ask. 

“Of course,” he said, and waited until Marinette had made it safely up the steps to her loft bed before following her. She was already curled up on her bed, blanket firmly tucked under her chin, but leaving one hand exposed and extended so he could hold it.

Adrien settled on the edge of her bed and held her hand, rubbing soothingly at it while her eyes drifted shut again. He watched her with a smile. It shouldn’t have surprised him that she would try and stand up for the bullies, and looking at her now he felt a twinge of shame at his own enthusiastic impulse to make them pay. 

It didn’t take long for her to drift off, and before he left, he leaned over to kiss her temple. He closed his eyes for a moment, the tip of his nose just brushing her hair. He wanted to try something- to say something to her now, when she couldn’t really hear him, words he wasn’t ready to say out loud, not yet. But she was so precious to him, he felt the urge to take them for a test drive, as it were. So he took a breath, shifted closer to her ear, and whispered, “I love you.”

He froze as she sighed and squeezed his hand. Had she not been asleep after all? But her grip relaxed again, and her breathing remained steady, though her lips curved into a small smile. Adrien sighed in contentment and pressed another soft kiss to her hair before sitting back up and gently prying his hand free. He silently went back down the steps and left, shutting the trap door behind him.

\----

Marinette hurried from the metro station, knowing that Alya, Nino, and Adrien would be waiting for her outside the school. The knowledge she could run across Claudette, or Audry, or even Robere or Georgio at any moment lurked in the back of her mind, but in the forefront was anticipation to see her friends, and the knowledge that they were determined to protect her. 

They were going to go public this morning- a picture taken together in front of the school and then posted to his Instagram account. Of course, everyone who mattered already knew about their relationship, but Adrien thought that letting the world officially know she was his girlfriend  _ today _ might make her bullies even more hesitant to approach her. That was another reason for doing it in front of the school- if any of them happened to walk by and see them together… well, Marinette might have found herself confronted, but they rather doubted that Adrien Agreste would. He had even made the concession of wearing  _ Gabriel _ clothes for the day. 

She’d made sure to wear a cute white beret with a black bow along with her pink pea coat. Adrien had said he would make sure to find a tailored coat of his own, so he could match her silhouette. She could see the school now, and a gaggle of girls standing in a knot around a familiar blonde head. Marinette decided to slow down so she wasn’t out of breath.

She took out her phone to text Alya in the agreed upon signal that she was getting close. Almost immediately, she saw Adrien’s head come up and turn toward her. In a few minutes she was close enough to see the huge smile on his face, and her own heart lifted. It really was something to allow herself to be happy with him- not pulling away, not feeling the sting of guilt every time she forced herself to be distant, and not pretending she didn’t feel unhappy because of it.

They hadn’t talked about how they were going to meet up, and Marinette had expected it would be the same as usual, except that in addition to the side-hug Adrien had often given her, he might kiss her on the top of her head or something. But he took her by surprise by shoving through the gaggle of girls to scoop her up and twirl her around. She clutched at her beret, hoping it wouldn’t fly off, and laughed. He put her down and the next moment was kissing her soundly. She vaguely heard excited screams in the background over the rushing of blood in her ears. 

Marinette was breathless all over again by the time he let her go, but couldn’t stop smiling. He grinned down at her, obviously pleased by his affect on her, adjusted her beret with a gloved hand and then pulled out his phone. They stood side by side, looking up at the camera as he took a selfie. Then he took her by surprise again by kissing her cheek while he took another selfie.

Marinette elbowed him a little and rolled her eyes, but when he showed her the pictures she blushed. She didn’t have much experience taking selfies, so she was very surprised to find that she liked them both. In the first picture they looked so happy, both of them grinning at the camera, and the look on Adrien’s face was just… if she’d been a stranger viewing the photo, she’d have called it love. Looking at it now, she felt herself blushing. And the second picture- that was just cute. Adrien had his eyes closed, kissing her cheek and she had the most adorable expression of surprise on her own face. She’d even reflexively pulled one hand up under her chin.

But then came the real surprise. Apparently Adrien’s thumb had slipped after taking the second selfie, because he’d accidentally taken another picture which showed the two of them looking at each other and it was just… such a couple picture. They both had heart eyes and soft smiles, and… Marinette had a feeling that was the picture that would get the most likes, even though it was slightly skewed and cut off the top of Adrien’s head.

They didn’t get to spend much time looking at the pictures together, though, because they were almost immediately surrounded by the other girls, who were one and all demanding to know if she was Ladybug, like, for real, and babbling at the top of their lungs. Marinette just smiled and nodded as Adrien pulled her close to his side in a show of support and protection. And then the bell rang and Alya and Nino were pulling them both away. 

By the time they made it to their homeroom, the thought of running into one of her bullies had fled Marinette’s mind completely.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I'm going to try and get another chapter out next week, but it's Spring Break for the kiddos and we're going to see my parents.
> 
> Thankfully, COVID-19 doesn't appear to be affecting my local area, so... prayers and thoughts going out to those who are affected. I hope you stay safe and healthy! And have plenty of toilet paper!
> 
> (Seriously people, *I* buy in bulk because I can't afford to drive an hour and a half both ways or pay the ridiculously inflated prices at the local grocery on a regular basis. Calm down.)


	29. Chapter 29

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Lila and Claudette find out who Ladybug is. The gang has a plan!

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Gah! I forgot to credit Lady Kae with the name "Operation Pedestal." I even reminded myself just before posting, but... sorry Lady Kae!

Claudette waited outside the school building for Lila to arrive. She hadn’t been able to talk to Lila except by bits and pieces here and there since Lila got back. Apparently her parents had her doing all kinds of chores after the trip, and she’d had to pack in some meetings with high-profile friends as well before school started. Something about a song with Jagged Stone, no less. So Claudette was feeling a little frustrated and, to be honest, a little left out. After all, she was Lila’s friend, too…

A silver sedan pulled up to the curb and a group of girls who had been hanging around gossiping and giggling to each other let out a collective gasp and started squealing. Claudette ignored them until she heard them squealing  _ “Adrien!” _ over and over. 

A blonde guy and a darker-skinned guy got out of the car. Claudette was too far away to really tell for sure, but he was blonde… could it be? The blonde in question waved to the squealing girls and they surged forward to surround him. He smiled at them and tried to talk to all of them at once, and Claudette had to admit she was impressed by his patience. She wondered if he really was Adrien Agreste, and if so, what that would mean for Lila this semester. 

She couldn’t stop thinking about that direct message no matter how hard she tried, though she hated to think badly of Lila. And not being able to talk to her since then didn’t help any. Fortunately, Lila’s car pulled up at that moment and she saw her best friend step out of the car, looking cute as usual in a puffy orange jacket over a military green maxi dress slit up the sides to expose muted purple leggings tucked into chunky boots. Claudette was just about to wave her over when Lila’s head turned toward the commotion of the girls surrounding the boy called Adrien. Claudette moved toward Lila instead, looking over her shoulder just in time to see the blonde boy pushing through the crowd of girls to meet a short, black-haired girl in a pink peacoat and white beret, scooping her up into a brief twirl before setting her back down and kissing her. The other girls screamed their approval.

Claudette stopped, blinking at the sight. She stood frozen, watching the young couple take several selfies, before the group as a whole turned and walked toward the front of the building. When Claudette finally shook herself free of her bemusement, she turned to Lila, only to see her standing white-faced with narrowed eyes. She had a vice-grip on her messenger bag strap and seemed wholly focused on the couple as they disappeared inside the school building.

“Lila?” Claudette asked tentatively. “Are you ok? Do you know them?”

Lila turned her head and saw Claudette, but instead of the smile of welcome Claudette expected, she frowned and pouted a little. Claudette frowned herself, beginning to reach out to comfort her friend. 

“I don’t want to talk about it,” Lila insisted, brushing Claudette’s hand aside. But then her mood changed suddenly, as it sometimes did, and she favored Claudette with her signature smile. “Don’t worry about it, ok? It’s good to see you! I’m so sorry I couldn’t talk much over the weekend. I got the feeling there was something you really wanted to talk about, and I feel so bad about not being there for you,” she cooed, and Claudette felt her worry and frustration melting away. Of course, she’d known all along that Lila wasn’t ignoring her, it was just that she was so busy with everything else she’d had to put on hold over the vacation. She couldn’t help it that her other obligations needed her attention.

“That’s okay,” Claudette said, “Maybe we can talk at lunch. But we need to get to class now. Do you have your schedule? Let’s see if we have any classes together.”

They’d both signed up for their classes online, right after they’d gotten the letter telling them which lycee they’d been assigned to. Lila had done hers right before leaving on vacation- literally the day of- so she hadn’t been able to tell Claudette before.

Lila pulled her schedule out and it turned out they shared almost every class. Claudette had a different science course, though- physics, where Lila had biology. Their first class of the day was Ancient History. Both of their phones pinged, but they were too busy finding the classroom to check them in the hall.

Claudette kept wondering about that interaction in front of the school they’d both witnessed. She wasn’t happy to see that the only open seats were in the back row. Lila might like sitting in the back, so she could avoid attracting attention and distracting the other students, but Claudette preferred a seat closer to the front.

Once they were seated, Lila took out her phone and checked her notifications. She angled it away from her, but Claudette saw her tap the Instagram app. Whatever it was had her pale and shaking after a moment or two of swiping. 

“Are you sure you’re ok?” she asked, genuinely concerned. “You look like you’ve got a fever or something.”

“I’m fine!” Lila actually snapped at her. Claudette pulled back, confused and a little hurt. But then she saw Lila swipe at her eyes and a surge of pity rose up instead.

Lila glanced at her out of the corner of her eye and wilted a little, anger changing to sadness. “It’s just…” she blinked and looked up at the ceiling, then closed her eyes and leaned toward Claudette, holding her phone out so Claudette could see. “She  _ stole _ him from me!” she said in a low voice that nonetheless throbbed with the pain she was feeling.

On the phone Claudette could see three selfie-style pictures- all posted to the account of one Adrien Agreste. They were all three very cute, showcasing a couple that seemed very much in love. And it turned out she’d been right- Adrien Agreste  _ was _ the boy from the front of the school… and standing beside him- it took her a moment to recognize the girl, she’d changed so much- was none other than Marinette Dupain-Cheng. Claudette could feel a chill run down her spine.

This was not good. Not good at all. Lila had finally gotten rid of that little snake, and now here they were attending the same school again. And somehow the little minx had gotten her hands on Lila’s boyfriend! All thoughts of Adrien’s direct message to her fled before the surge of righteous anger that flooded her system. Of course, she should have expected that Marinette would work her wily charms on the poor boy... and now Claudette had a mess on her hands. 

Lila had told her how, when they were all fourteen or so and in the same college class, Marinette had gone through most of the boys in their grade, breaking hearts right and left. Apparently, she’d even gone so far as to arrange a date with Robere after weeks of teasing and leading him on- and then she’d stood him up and pretended like she knew nothing about any date the next time she saw him. According to Lila, Robere had been heartbroken, and only started to revive when Claudette had joined them a year later. Lila had speculated that perhaps it was that event which had led to Robere adopting a more callous approach to romance and dating. 

Claudette sighed a little, thinking of Robere. No matter what he’d done in the past, she couldn’t stop the twinge of regret she felt when she thought about how she could never date him. Of course, it was horrible that he now viewed women as good for nothing more than sex, but… he’d been sweet to her. Unfortunately, Lila was probably right in claiming that of course Robere would be sweet to someone he was trying to seduce. Well, she thought, pulling her thoughts back on track, it was just as well that none of the boys in their school wanted to try dating Marinette after that year. And now she was probably going to do the same thing to Adrien, who most likely didn’t deserve it.

Or… could it be worse? Could she actually have targeted him for reasons other than just foiling Lila’s romance? Claudette recalled vague stories of how Marinette had once claimed she wanted to be a fashion designer. She’d even tried to claim that she’d designed something Lila had come up with herself in a fit of creativity one weekend. What if she was trying to make her dreams a reality by dating the famous model? The model whose father just happened to own a fashion company?

Claudette wrapped her arm around Lila and rubbed her arm soothingly as class started. The teacher had some spiel to read about bullies, but Claudette wasn’t really paying attention. She was too busy trying to figure out a way to get Adrien alone so she could warn him against Marinette, and try to find out if he still had feelings for Lila.

\----

Alix practically vibrated in her seat the whole class period. For once she didn’t feel even the slightest urge to drift off during the lecture, but even so she couldn’t wait for it to end. It was the first day back, and the teachers were already on the watch- she couldn’t risk being caught texting during class, even though it felt like her phone was a red-hot coal in her pocket.

She dashed out the door as soon as the bell rang and pulled her phone out, opening the group chat Alya had set up. After much back and forth and deliberation, they’d decided not to leave Marinette out of the chat, even though it was possible that the mention of her bullies would throw her off balance. It did limit their plans to things Marinette would approve of, though, which was a bit disappointing. Alya and Adrien had told everyone how Marinette had reacted to some not-quite-joking remarks and suggestions for dealing with the bullies, and while Alix could see her point, she couldn’t quite see letting them off the hook. Not after what they’d done.

Alix scrolled past the weekend messages of everyone confirming they were there and ready to go and began a new text.

[Xgamesforlife] Operation Pedestal is go, go, go! I’ve got Lila AND Claudette in first period. Neither of them talked to me, though. Gotta wait on that. 

She hit send and sped off toward her next class, wanting to get there, so she could respond to the incoming messages before classes began again. Her phone pinged the whole way there. Fortunately, Adrien was in her next period class, so the two of them could powwow. 

She was the first student in the classroom- in fact, there were still some students leaving from the previous period when she arrived- and she collapsed into her usual seat to wait for Kim and Adrien. Pulling out her phone, she read the messages which mostly ranged from “!!!” to angry devil emojis, some of them smiling wickedly.

The last message was from Adrien.

[Chat Noir] Check your schedules, and update as you spot them in classes. Let’s keep our Purrincess safe. Don’t forget to activate your apps when you talk to them!

It was clear that none of them had expected Marinette’s number one bully- the person behind all the other bullies in fact- would really be attending their school. Alix needed Max to pin down the odds on that, but they couldn’t be high. Yet, here she was and now they would have to deal with her.

Max had spent the weekend tweaking the code of an audio recording/recognition program he’d been working on as part of his ongoing project to design a true robot AI. He’d turned it into an app suitable for phones and made it so all you had to do was tap the app once and it would begin recording automatically. He’d also hard-linked the app to a cloud-save account which only he could access. The app would automatically lock and save the recordings to that account, so no one could accuse them of tampering with the recordings after the fact. Alix might have preferred a more direct method of confrontation, but she had to admit that getting the two of them to admit their crimes was going to be a whole lot of fun. It was going to be even more fun when they were confronted with evidence given by their own mouths. Alix smiled wickedly at the thought, even as Adrien finally walked through the door.

\----

Claudette checked her phone on the way to their next class while Lila chattered away about how amazing the island had been and how many rare fish she’d seen snorkeling on the reef. Claudette was proud of how Lila was handling the situation so far. Sure, she’d been upset to find out, but now she was doing her best to put a brave face on and distracting herself from her heartbreak. Claudette smiled and made the appropriate noises, but her mind was far away.

Lila made a comment about how quiet Claudette was being after their second class, but Claudette passed it off as trying to pay attention to the layout of the school, even though once she figured out how the classroom numbers were organized it was pretty easy to find her way around. Lila waved a cheery goodbye as she headed to her science class, and Claudette walked to her own in resignation. One more class before she could try and corner Adrien. She was still trying to figure out how exactly she was going to do that when she walked into the physics room and the noise level dropped.

She figured maybe the teacher was right behind her so she turned to look… but no one was behind her. So she looked around for an empty seat- only to see the Marinette  _ she _ knew staring straight back at her, blank and white-faced with almost no physical expression at all. There were three people standing with her at one of the front row desks, and one of them was her apparent boyfriend, Adrien Agreste. The other two Claudette didn’t recognize, but she assumed they must be Adrien’s friends- a tall girl with goth tendencies, and the brown-skinned boy she’d seen with Adrien in front of the school earlier, though it took her a moment to recognize him since he wasn’t wearing his coat.

Claudette had a sudden urge to accuse Marinette of stealing Adrien from Lila right then and there, but… something about the expressions on the others' faces made her hesitate. Every other time she’d accused Marinette of something or taught her a lesson, it’d been in private, except for Lila’s other friends. Besides, class was about to start- not exactly the ideal time to start something. So instead of saying anything, she just glared and began to move past them, before realizing that she had a golden opportunity here. She set her lips and ignored Marinette as she took a step towards Adrien, who shifted a little so he stood between them.

“I need to talk to you about your girlfriend,” Claudette said bluntly, not quite sneering the last word, and glancing past him at Marinette’s white face. “There are some things you need to know.”

Adrien frowned. Then he set his jaw and nodded sharply. “Fine. Meet me in the Library at lunch.”

Claudette nodded, satisfied, and moved away to find a seat in the back. She glanced toward the front and saw an interesting scene play out.

Adrien and his three friends put their heads together while Adrien wrapped an arm around Marinette, as if he was supporting her. Claudette smirked to herself at the thought that she’d just put the fear of God into the other girl. Adrien was probably going to drop her like hotcakes after hearing what she had to say. After a moment, the brown-skinned boy picked up his bag from the front table and moved a couple of tables to the rear with the tall goth girl. They sat down together while Marinette dropped limply into the seat next to Adrien. Adrien kept a hand on her shoulder, even while digging in his messenger bag for his school-issued tablet. 

Claudette didn’t care that Adrien seemed to be protective of Marinette. Of course he would be- Marinette had probably told him all sorts of lies in her bid to win him away from Lila. Whether or not it would last past what Claudette had to say… well, that was a different matter.

\----

Lila was trying to keep her game-face on, which for her meant a cheerful and innocent expression, but it was hard in the face of the blow she’d been dealt. Adrien Agreste had chosen that morning of all others to finally reveal who his Ladybug was- and it was none other than her long-time rival, Marinette. And absolutely everyone was talking about it. She’d stopped counting the number of times she’d heard some girl sighing over their romance, murmuring their names as if they were some kind of divine couple. Oh, a few were sad about it, but by and large everyone thought it was the cutest thing ever. 

It didn’t help her mood any that Marinette looked disgustingly happy in those pictures Adrien had posted. Ugh. Lila much preferred the old Marinette- the one who hadn’t had the courage to even look up while walking to and from classes. And Claudette was distracted this morning, too, hardly saying a word about the wonderful vacation Lila had dreamt up and described in detail, which miffed her a little. Here she was putting in all this work to impress her friend and Claudette couldn’t even pay attention. Lila hadn’t said anything about her crashed and burned fake relationship since their first class, but thankfully, she had jumped to the obvious conclusion- Marinette had stolen Adrien away from Lila while Lila was away on vacation.

Of all the girls in the city of Paris, the guy she’d chosen to fake date just had to meet and fall in love with her arch enemy! A girl who, not so long ago, had been so thoroughly cowed that she’d taken the extreme measure of transferring schools just to get away from Lila, and yet who, it seemed, had already recovered to the point where she could look deliriously happy in a picture! Not even a whole year later! Honestly, what were the odds? Of course, Lila had made a critical error in not researching Adrien’s education more thoroughly. She’d read the early bios- which stated that he was homeschooled- and assumed, from the way none of the information changed for the first three years of his rise to fame, that he had continued to be homeschooled. Gabriel Agreste was known for his controlling ways, after all- it would have made sense for him to keep Adrien home and only let him out for photoshoots and fashion events. 

But Lila would have been a lot more careful if she’d known he’d started attending a public school. She gritted her teeth under cover of a smile at a random girl who happened to meet her eye in the hall, and decided to place the blame for that on Adrien’s shoulders. He should have stayed at home! If he’d only stuck with homeschooling, she wouldn’t be in this situation now.

Lila let herself rage internally for the few minutes she had left before entering her biology classroom, but then she really did put her game face on- metaphorically speaking. She needed to find new allies. Claudette wasn’t enough- she needed to spread her own version of the story as quickly as possible, before people really began to accept Marinette as Adrien’s long anticipated girlfriend. 

So when she walked into the classroom, Lila was looking for people who looked particularly gullible. She’d developed something of a sixth sense for that over the years. There was something in a person’s expression- she couldn’t quite define it, but she wasn’t usually wrong.

This time she decided to sit next to an auburn haired girl with glasses and a darker complexion, with an interesting beauty mark just above her right eyebrow, and a vapidly cheerful expression. The girl was texting on her phone, but looked up with a bright smile when Lila paused beside her. She slid into the vacant seat beside her and smiled back tremulously.

“Hi, I’m Lila. I’m new here, is it okay if I sit next to you?” she asked, with just the barest hint of tears in her voice.

“Of course! I’m always happy to meet the new kids,” the girl said, after putting her phone down. She held out a hand and smiled widely. “I’m Alya! So, did you go to that school that got shut down, or are you just new in town?”

“Oh, well…” Lila looked down to hide her satisfaction. This girl had just given her the perfect opening. “Yes, actually. I’m… kind of the reason it got shut down,” she said, with perfect truth for once. “I was being bullied, you see, and I finally got some evidence…” she trailed off, not wanting to go too fast or far. Let the other girl fill in the details a little. Anyway, the details didn’t really matter as long as the story spread.

“Oh wow! That must have taken a lot of courage,” Alya said, sounding sympathetic. Then she blinked. “They did catch all of your bullies, though, right? I mean, you’re not going to run into them here, are you?”

Lila thought fast. “Well, they did catch most of them,” she temporized, “but one- the worst one- actually transferred to a different school before they closed ours down, so they didn’t catch her.”

“Ah,” Alya said. “That’s too bad. Why don’t you tell me what her name is, and I can tell you if she goes here! I know at least the names of most of the people in our grade. Although, if she’s as bad as you say, she might have gotten kicked out already. They’re pretty hard on bullying behavior here.”

Lila nodded. “Yes, that’s what my first period teacher said! I’m really happy about that,” she lied through her teeth. She was far from happy about it, and if she’d taken the time to read the stupid student handbook when she’d first been assigned to this school, she probably would have asked for a transfer somewhere else. The rules were going to make it hard for her to do anything effective if a need arose. “But… well, I wouldn’t want to get her into trouble if she’s not doing it anymore,” Lila said, pretending to be humble. 

“Uh-uh, girl,” Alya insisted. “I used to deal with a spoiled brat myself, and I have no desire to deal with another bully if I can help it.”

“Well, her name is Marinette. Marinette Dupain-Cheng,” Lila said, making sure to sound hesitant and humble. 

“Marinette…” Alya repeated, pursing her lips. “Hm… where have I heard that name recently? Oh! Wait. Isn’t that  _ Adrien Agreste’s _ new girlfriend?!” Alya looked at her in shock, and Lila could have danced for joy. Instead, she winced dramatically.

“Actually,” Lila started, before pinching her lips together, as if she didn’t want to go on.

“Actually, what?” Alya pressed, glancing toward the door. “Come on, spit it out! We have time- the teacher’s not here yet.”

“Well,” Lila turned her head away and made her voice sound as tear-choked as she could. “ _ I _ actually met Adrien first, and he… we hit it off, and… but then Marinette somehow found out, and by the time I got back from my winter break trip, he… well, he’d cheated on me with her and now…” Lila hid her face in her hands and dry sobbed. She’d thrown in that dig about cheating because, why not? It wasn't like either of them were going to find out about it. At least, not any time soon. And she  _ felt _ like maligning Marinette’s virtue after she’d gone and done the impossible without even knowing it, irritating goody-goody that she was.

“Oh, boy. That’s rough,” Alya said, putting a hand on her shoulder and squeezing in sympathy. Actually she was squeezing a bit harder than normal… and just kept squeezing. Lila finally flinched when the pressure got painful.

“Ouch!” She clutched at her shoulder and threw Alya a reproachful look.

“Oh, I’m so sorry!” Alya said, raising both hands to her mouth. “When I get upset about something sometimes I forget to watch myself. My sister Anansi is an MMA fighter, and she’s made sure I have a strong grip. Sorry girl,” she finished with a wry smile. “But that’s awful, you know? I totally get how you feel.”

Lila growled under her breath, but smiled back. “That’s ok! Everyone makes mistakes sometimes.”

She looked down at the desk, letting her smile fall again. “I’m just glad you believe me. Practically no one at my other school did.” Out of the corner of her eye, she saw Alya prop her hands under her chin as she faced the front of the classroom, unknowingly bumping her phone with her elbow so it slid a little closer to Lila’s side of the shared desk. She noted that Alya’s jaw was tense, which was a good sign she’d swallowed the bait, hook, line, and sinker. Any minute now Alya would burst out with some impassioned response.

“Hm, well…” Alya mused. “I have to say, I’m disappointed in him.”

Wait, what? Lila blinked, started to say something, but then decided not to. It seemed an odd reaction, but… she considered that Alya didn’t know Adrien- he was a stranger to her, and could Lila really expect her to get worked up over the sins of a stranger? But… Lila had been almost sure that Alya would react with righteous rage on Lila’s behalf, not this cool detachment. She  _ could _ work with that, but righteous rage was so much easier to direct. 

“I mean, a model as famous as he is should set a better example for all the other guys in the world, right?”

“Oh, absolutely!” Lila hastily agreed, thrown off her balance and forgetting to pretend heartbreak for a moment. “Celebrities are supposed to be held to a higher standard.”

“Definitely,” Alya said, nodding firmly. “And I’m sure his father would be scandalized at his behavior toward you, too. He’s got such a stick up his butt about his brand’s image, and of course we all know that Adrien is the face of  _ Gabriel _ . Not to mention that he expects so much of Adrien in general.” She shook her head sadly, before turning to smile at Lila. “You should tell him so. It’ll mean more coming from you than it would from me. After all, if you were Adrien’s girlfriend so recently, you have a closer connection.”

Lila froze, eye’s widening. “W-what do you mean?”

Alya’s smile turned slightly vindictive. “Well, I’ve been dating Adrien’s best friend for the last three years. But that’s nothing compared to a fake girlfriend, especially one he apparently ‘cheated on’ with my best friend… right?”

And with that, Alya scooped up her phone and bag and moved to another seat, leaving Lila gaping at this sudden turn of events. She closed her eyes in horror as the magnitude of what had just happened swept over her like a tsunami.

No.

_ NO. _

This could not be happening. Lila couldn’t have miscalculated so grossly as to pick out the  _ one person _ in this school who wouldn’t believe her. But when Lila shot a carefully wounded look around the classroom and met Alya’s basilisk glare, she swallowed hard and knew it was true. But… perhaps it wasn’t so bad. So Marinette had told Alya and probably Adrien about her, so what? Maybe  _ they _ knew the full truth, but… no one else did. So Lila’s plan could still work. She could still turn the majority of the student body against Marinette, just as she had before. She simply needed to expand her targets to two more people. It wouldn’t be that hard, after all, to claim that Marinette not only was bullying her again, but that she’d gotten the other two involved by lying to them.

Lila faced the front again, after making sure that Alya was sitting alone again. If someone had sat next to the girl, Lila would have had to add them to her list of ‘persecutors’ as well just in case, and she really didn’t want to do that. It was going to be complicated enough with two more people whom she didn’t know much of anything about. She sat back in her seat to review her plan of campaign and make adjustments, even while the teacher started his lecture with a reminder that bullying behavior of any kind should be reported.

\----

[Alyavenging] Guys, I effed up.

[Alyavenging] Lila is in my biology class and she actually sat right down next to me and fed me a sob story.

[Alyavenging] I tried to play along, I really did, but then she started lying her butt off, and… 

[Alyavenging] I should have let her ramble and asked about the stuff Marinette supposedly did to her, and at first I was going to, but 

[Alyavenging] she started talking about how Marinette used to bully her, and how she stole Adrien from her by making him cheat on her while Lila was gone over break

[Alyavenging] I just. Grrrr

[Alyavenging] Anyway, now she knows to watch out for me, which means I can’t help the mission. Sorry Mari.

[Chat Noir] Don’t feel too bad, I would’ve done the same. You’re not completely out yet, though. There’s still Claudette. Who is in our physics class, btw. She gave me a perfect opening, and I’m taking it at lunch.

[Chat Noir] Gotta go- front row and all. Updates later!

  
  



	30. Chapter 30

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> TW: mentions of suicide
> 
> Claudette and Adrien talk. The gang takes care of Marinette. And Lila gives Adrien an ultimatum.

Marinette had turned the sound on her phone off. She couldn’t handle the constant pinging of people in the chat. It just reminded her that the nightmare was beginning again.

She’d been so happy that morning, taking pictures with Adrien in front of the school, but now… She had a hard time concentrating on physics at the best of times, but with Claudette sitting behind them it was worse. After a while though, she began to fall back into the mindset that had kept her  _ somewhat _ safe and unmolested, while letting her focus on her schoolwork. She made herself as small as possible, hunching forward over the desk, and kept her eyes either on the teacher or her notes. She shoved every thought and emotion to the back of her mind- later on, it would scare her how easily she’d been able to do that- and for the next hour lived and breathed numbers and equations.

It was a good defense, but it wasn’t fool-proof. Every so often Adrien’s hand would brush against hers briefly, or he would rest it on her shoulder or back, and everything would come flooding back. It was painful, being pulled back like that. She needed to be numb to survive, to keep from losing her calm completely. She almost asked him to stop, but phrases from her sessions with Dr. Fu came to mind, reminding her that she deserved as much love and happiness as anyone else, and not to push away those who were only trying to help. 

Towards the end of class, she resolutely reached out and held Adrien’s left hand and stared blankly at the board until the bell rang. Marinette had her things packed and was standing ready to go before anyone else, and it took Adrien tugging on her hand before she came back to herself. She read the concern in his eyes and sat back down, flushing with embarrassment. Nino and Juleka came up to the desk and stood like sentinels until the classroom was empty. Marinette didn’t know or notice when Claudette left- it must have been in the crowd of other students. She didn’t know if she was happy about that or not.

“Are you okay?” Adrien asked, gazing intently at her. “I couldn’t tell what was going on with you in class, but something was…”

Marinette nodded. “Sorry,” she said. “I, um, I kinda went back to-” she took a breath. “I had a, a way of coping when I was there, and basically I just tried not to feel anything and focus.” She looked at Adrien and gave him the best smile she was capable of. “I’m sorry. I don’t want to do that anymore, even though feeling can hurt. Thank you.” She took his hand again, and squeezed it, then looked up at Nino and Juleka. They wore identical expressions of concern. 

“And thank you, too. It helps to know I can count on people here. It’s… well. Anyway, let’s go to lunch, alright?”

“Fine, dudette, but we are taking you  _ out _ for lunch. No arguments. We’re getting off campus so there’s no chance of you running into that witch.”

“Totally. I know this really awesome place close to here, Rose and I go there a lot.”

Marinette blinked back tears and smiled again.  _ It’s not going to be like last time, _ she told herself.  _ It’s not going to be like last time. _

Adrien pulled her into a lingering hug. “I’ll walk you to the car, but I do need to meet Goon Number 1 in the library.”

Marinette stiffened despite herself and then laughed as she registered what he’d called Claudette. “She has a name, you know…” she said, still smiling a little.

“I know,” he said, his own expression lightening up. “But it got you to laugh, didn’t it?” He hugged her tighter. “Don’t worry,” he murmured. “I know you, and I believe you. There’s nothing she can say that will change my mind.” 

\----

Claudette found the library pretty quickly and stood near the entrance, not sure whether to go looking for Adrien, or to wait for him there. In the end she decided to wait. Either way, she was most likely to actually find Adrien by staying in one place. If he was already there, he would either come looking for her, or see her on his way out of the library (if he’d decided she wasn’t coming). And if he wasn’t there yet, he’d see her on his way in.

She didn’t have to wait long, though. Adrien came in through the double doors and spotted her. He nodded briefly, and then walked up to the librarian’s desk. He spoke to her and she handed him a key chained to a block of wood. Adrien looked back at her and jerked his head further in. Claudette somewhat reluctantly followed him. It hadn’t escaped her that he hadn’t smiled once, and she was… kind of dreading what she had to say to him. 

No matter what Marinette had done to Lila, it was possible that she’d changed. After all, since Claudette had been going to school with them both, she’d never heard of Marinette targeting someone else. If that was the case, then she might have moved on from her vindictive ways. But then she reminded herself that if Marinette had really changed, she wouldn’t have stolen Adrien from Lila. Her resolve firmed again.

Adrien led the way to what was obviously an add-on to the original floor-plan. A small space had been glassed in that was just large enough for two small rooms, each with a large table and six chairs. Obviously these were for study groups or students with group projects to work on so they couldn’t disturb anyone else with their necessary chatter. Claudette figured that was a good precaution. The windows would make sure no one suspected any funny business, and the privacy meant they could raise their voices without being scolded. 

Adrien unlocked one of the doors and held it open for her. Claudette went in and set her things down on the table. Adrien came in and put his bag down, too. He briefly took his phone out of his pocket, glanced at the screen, and then put it back in his pocket.

“Ok, so we’ve got an hour for lunch. What did you have to say about Marinette?”

Claudette took a deep breath. Straight to the point, then.

“Well, to be honest, she’s not a very nice person,” Claudette began, mildly. Something shifted in Adrien’s expression, but she pressed on. “I don’t know what she’s told you about her old school, but… you really shouldn’t believe her over Lila.”

“Go on,” Adrien said, which Claudette took as encouragement, even though his expression didn’t change. At least he didn’t deny knowing Lila. She licked her lips and continued.

“I really don’t know much about how it started, but Marinette has hated Lila since I’ve known her, and that’s despite Lila actually being nice to Marinette. From what I’ve heard, Marinette has been jealous of Lila since they were both in grade school. For some reason, Marinette never got over that, and she’s been tormenting Lila off and on since I’ve been going to school with both of them because of it. Any time Lila came back from working with a charity, or visiting one of her famous friends, Marinette would always frown and look away. She never wanted to hear about any of it, never even donated to one of Lila’s charities, even when Lila went out of her way to find one that Marinette might be interested in supporting. Instead, she’d lash out at Lila when no one else was around, usually physically.”

Claudette paused to take a breath. She found she was shaking a little. “I can’t remember exactly how many class projects she ruined that Lila had to start over from scratch, or how many times she pushed her or hit her, giving Lila bruises and making her sprain her ankle or wrist catching herself. After so many years of this treatment, I admit, my friends and I got tired of watching Lila get hurt with nothing being done about it. So we decided to teach Marinette some lessons of our own. But even that didn’t do anything, no matter how hard we tried to get her to see reason. Anyway, it got a little rough- I’ll admit that. I was actually going to tell everyone to stop for a while when Marinette suddenly stopped coming to school, and then… well, she just never came back.”

Claudette shrugged. “I mean, I was kinda glad, because it meant Lila wasn’t getting bullied anymore. But then, this year Tikki started doing it, where before she’d just refused to believe the truth about Marinette and always defended her against us. I honestly don’t know what her problem was, and I didn’t like what she was doing, but… I know what happened to her was out of line and should never have happened. I wasn’t a part of that, just so you know.”

Claudette looked up to see Adrien still standing with crossed arms and clenched jaw, took a deep breath and finished, saying, “I know Marinette’s probably told you some version of this that doesn’t paint Lila in the best light, but I  _ know _ Lila, and… well. I guess you have to choose who to believe. But I really wish you’d give Lila another chance. I don’t even know how Marinette found out you were dating Lila, but honestly, I didn’t think she’d go so far as to steal you away from her.”

A few moments passed in silence before Adrien spoke. “Are you finished?”

Claudette nodded, crossing her own arms. She didn’t like doing it, and Adrien obviously didn’t believe her, but she’d had to try.

“Ok. Here’s what really happened. And keep in mind, there is plenty of evidence to back up Marinette’s story, which I’ll be happy to let you see. There doesn’t seem to be any evidence in Lila’s favor beyond your word.”

Claudette frowned.

“I heard this from Marinette, backed up by Tikki, only last Friday because, honestly, Marinette just wanted to put everything behind her. The only reason any of this came out was because she was so scared of it happening all over again that we- her friends- pretty much made her tell us what was going on. But it’s not just their word against yours- like I said, there’s evidence, and my friends and I spent the rest of the weekend looking it all up.”

“In the first place, Marinette never stole me from Lila. I’ve never met Lila. I kind of recognize you from your instagram pictures, which I saw when I messaged you. That being the case, I have to wonder why you still believe that I was dating Lila when I specifically told you that your friend had lied to you about that. I can only guess that Lila somehow convinced you of that despite my message. So let me make this perfectly clear,” he said, leaning forward a little. “I’ve been in love with Marinette since October of last year, and I’ve never met Lila before in my life. And if you don’t believe me about that, you can ask anyone here at school. I made my interest pretty obvious. The only reason I know what Lila might look like is because of old yearbooks Tikki showed us and your own instagram photos.”

Claudette swallowed. She’d forgotten about that direct message after Lila had arrived at school, the thought getting lost in her concern for her friend. Why hadn’t she thought of it when Lila accused Marinette though? 

“I-” she started, only to be cut off.

“No. I heard you out, now it’s my turn to talk and your turn to listen.” Adrien waited until Claudette reluctantly nodded. Adrien sighed suddenly. “Look, let’s sit down. This might take a while.”

They both pulled out a chair and sat down, and Adrien leaned forward. “Ok, so… as far as I know and anyone can tell, this thing between Lila and Marinette did start in grade school- and it was because Lila lied about something and Marinette dared to challenge her on it. Specifically, Lila lied about being on a trip to visit Prince Ali of Achu when, in fact, she was at home all weekend, grounded for lying.”

Claudette felt her anger rising again, but before she could say anything, Adrien held up his hand again. “I know you find that hard to believe. Let me go on. Marinette honestly thought that it would all blow over, but it didn’t. From that moment on, Lila started being mean to Marinette whenever she could. She’d start rumors about her, trip her on the playground or in gym, ruin her projects if she could. Basically, she would do anything to make Marinette look bad and to make all their friends abandon her. And she didn’t stop lying, either. Every week it was something new- a charity she started, or a visit to a celebrity friend- all things chosen to impress everyone around her and make her the center of attention. Slowly, she won all their mutual friends away from Marinette, making her out to be just jealous of Lila’s wonderful life.”

Claudette rolled her eyes. So far, all this sounded like what Lila had told her, except it switched the roles of victim and villain. 

“But here’s the thing,” Adrien said, leaning forward again. “Lila doesn’t know any famous people. The charities she’s set up and collected for are all fakes. She’s never been to Achu to visit the Prince, either in the past or recently. My friend Rose is actually pen pals with Prince Ali- they met when he was here in Paris for a brief visit and she was part of the commitee of the charity he had chosen to support here. They hit it off, and they’ve been writing back and forth ever since. She asked him if he’d ever met or heard of a girl named Lila Rossi, and guess what? He hadn’t. And he took the time to warn her from having anything to do with people who would stoop low enough to use his name for their own gain.”

“More than that, Lila never saved Jagged Stone’s kitten, and he’s never written a song for her. My friend Juleka plays guitar in a band called Kitty Section that Jagged has repeatedly invited to be one of his openers when he has a concert here in Paris. When her older brother reached out to Jagged’s assistant to confirm or deny Lila’s story, guess what? Again, we find out that Lila had lied. Jagged was pretty upset about it, honestly. She’s what… sixteen, or a little older? And he’s in his thirties. You can imagine how it would look if he’d actually gone and written a song about a minor like that. He has no intention of being accused of taking advantage of a minor in any capacity.”

Claudette squirmed a little in her seat. She didn’t like where this was going, but she wasn’t convinced yet, either. Both of these people just happened to be Adrien’s friends? What made their word better than Lila’s? She huffed a little, rolling her eyes again.

“Not convinced yet, huh?” Adrien said, sitting back in his seat. “Alright, fine. Let me ask you some questions, then. Did you ever see Lila’s completed projects before Marinette supposedly ruined them? Did you ever take note of how quickly Lila recovered from the injuries Marinette supposedly dealt her? Have you ever seen something Lila made during one of her so exclusive one-on-one lessons with famous artists?”

Claudette glared at him. Just because Lila had always been a quick healer and never wanted to make a big deal about things...

“No? Ok, well, maybe you can answer this then. How did Marinette act at your school? Did she brag and boast about the things she’d done to Lila lately? Did she walk around school with Tikki, daring people to mess with her? Did she even target anyone else?”

Claudette set her jaw and kept quiet.

“Well?”

“Oh, you want me to talk now? Fine,” Claudette ground out. “No, Marinette never did anything like that. She actually reminded me of a mouse a lot, kind of scurrying around and avoiding people. I guess I thought she was secretly ashamed of herself and that’s how it came out. The only person that stayed friends with her was Tikki and the two of them stuck together and avoided everyone else as much as they could. I guess they knew no one would believe their lies about Lila,” she added, sending a challenging look over to Adrien. But he didn’t react, beyond a certain gleam in his eye that sent a chill down her spine despite herself.

“And is that the behavior you expect out of a bully? Have you known  _ any _ other bullies who acted like that?” he asked quietly. “Because to me, that sounds more like someone who is getting bullied themselves.”

Claudette shifted uncomfortably. He had a point, unfortunately. She’d always thought it was weird for Marinette to act so ashamed and yet still continue to hurt Lila.

“Let me ask you something else. Did you ever hear anyone other than Lila talking about something they’d seen Marinette do to her? Because it seems to me that, Marinette’s intelligence aside, someone must have walked in on it at some point. I mean, you and your friends didn’t always get away with it in complete secrecy, did you? Or,” he said, when Claudette didn’t react, “maybe Lila let you listen to some recordings of Marinette insulting or even hurting her, hm? I know Marinette got some audio of you people attacking her that last year- some very nasty name calling and threats, as I recall, along with a lot of nauseating noises as you all beat her black and blue, if not bloody. Surely Lila let you listen to some of that coming from Marinette and Tikki… right?”

His eyes had that dangerous gleam again, even though his tone stayed quiet. Claudette flashed back to the many times she and her friends had cornered Marinette when someone else walked in on it- usually they’d turned right around and left again, but… and no matter how hard she tried, she couldn’t think of anyone other than Lila claiming Marinette had done something. Nor had Lila ever mentioned trying to get evidence against Marinette, even so much as a recording. Yet… now that she thought about it, Lila had said the school closed because of evidence she’d given the administration against Marinette and Tikki... She shied away from that thought, though. She refused to believe her best friend was such a liar.

But her mind continued to pull up images and conversations, which, when viewed through the lens of Lila-as-bully, suddenly made a lot more sense. Claudette could recall at least three different occasions when she’d begun to doubt that Marinette had done something, simply because she had, herself, seen Marinette somewhere else that day.

“So,” Adrien said, apparently reading something in her expression. “You’re beginning to realize the truth. I’m sorry for it because it’s going to get even worse before it gets better. Didn’t you say something about teaching Marinette some lessons last year?” Adrien said, making the finger quotes and voice practically dripping with disdain.

Claudette crossed her arms. “Yeah? We only did it when we finally got tired of her giving Lila grief,” she said, confidently. Inwardly, though, she was beginning to feel a chill. “Fair’s fair, after all, and I guess an eye for an eye is a pretty decent way to deal with bullies.” 

Adrien leaned back and said, “It wasn’t a very effective way to deal with Marinette’s  _ alleged _ bullying, though, was it? After all, apparently she never stopped, no matter what anyone did to her. Did she.”

Claudette swallowed before answering. That had begun to bother her, actually, toward the end, before Marinette left. 

“No,” she admitted. “It didn’t seem to work against Marinette. And I don’t know why! I mean, it was such a petty grudge- just jealousy! You’d think she’d stop doing it after…”

“After?”

“Well, after we taught her a few week’s worth of lessons,” Claudette finished, huffing.

“A few week’s worth of lessons.” Adrien repeated, his voice like ice. “Claudette, do you know why Marinette left?”

Claudette shrugged. “No. I mean, I was happy because it meant Lila wasn’t being bullied anymore, but then Tikki started in on it-”

“She tried to kill herself.”

Claudette stared at him. All of a sudden the silence of the little room pressed in on her ears.

“What?”

“Marinette tried to commit suicide.” Adrien looked at her as if she were the most loathsome insect ever to exist. Claudette shivered. “And  _ you _ did that to her. You and all the others who blindly believed a  _ liar _ with a petty grudge she couldn’t let go of.”

“That’s not true,” Claudette said, but she was shaken.

“Go ask her  _ parents _ ,” Adrien leaned forward again. “And if they throw you out for daring to accuse them of  _ lying _ about such a thing, go ask that detective who was investigating Tikki’s assault- he’s got all the evidence. And speaking of Tikki’s assault, how the hell could any of you justify that?”

“It never would have gone so far if she’d just stopped!” Claudette shouted, desperately trying to defend her actions and, in her panic, unsure if she was talking about Marinette or Tikki or both.

“You can’t stop doing something you’re not doing in the first place!” Adrien yelled back, actually standing to lean on the table.

Claudette gaped at him again, then shook her head. “No. You’re lying. You have to be lying.”

“You can deny it all you want, but that’s what happened. Obviously, when Marinette tried to commit suicide, everything that was happening to her came out and her parents naturally removed her from that miserable excuse of a school,” Adrien said scornfully. “She’s been in counseling ever since, and it’s only due to that that she was ready to come back to any school last semester. And even so, she’s had trouble trusting people, not to mention herself. Why do you think it took so long for her to tell me and our other friends any of this? No one had believed her before, so why should she expect us to?”

Claudette had put her head down on her chest, seething with Adrien’s implications, but despite herself, the note of pain in his voice when he said that last bit made her look up at him.

“I can promise you, Marinette fully expected that the only thing it would take for all of us to abandon her like her old friends did was someone from Lila’s friend group coming to school with us and spreading all kinds of wild tales of her supposed past. And now that it’s actually Lila herself who is here? She’s terrified. Well, guess what? We-  _ I’m _ \- not going to let you two ruin this fresh start she’s made for herself. You can say whatever you want, you can believe a liar if you can’t face the truth, but you’re never going to turn me or any of our friends against Marinette. So I suggest you stay away from her unless you’re ready to give her one hell of an apology. And you can pass that along to Lila- it’ll save me the trouble.”

Adrien stood up and pulled a flashdrive out of his pocket. He tossed it onto the table, and Claudette stared at it, still not sure what to think.

“What’s that?”

“Evidence,” Adrien said. Then he put the block of wood with the key to the room on the table, and left. But before he closed the door, he leaned back in and added, “Oh, and if Lila tries to double down on her lie about dating me, tell her she can expect to hear from my father’s lawyers.”

\----

Adrien pulled his phone out and stopped the recording as he left the library. He needed to put distance between himself and Claudette or he would be tempted to go back and really lay into her. At least she’d looked conflicted, maybe even a tad remorseful, toward the end. She’d definitely been shocked to hear about Marinette’s suicide attempt. Still. Adrien knew Marinette would tell him to go easy on her, that she’d been the victim of lies just as much as Marinette had been, but… there was a difference between being injured because of lies and being the person who injures someone else because of lies.

Abruptly, he stopped halfway to the cafeteria and leaned against the wall, pulling his phone out again. He needed to talk to his Ladybug. She picked up on the second ring, and he could hear laughter in the background.

“Hey,” Marinette said, sounding much happier. There was even the remnant of a laugh in her voice. Adrien took a deep breath and relaxed.

“Hey,” he said softly. “I just wanted to check on you. How’s your lunch?”

There was another burst of laughter in the background and Marinette giggled. “It’s going well,” she said. “Nino told everyone about your Goon Number 1 dig at Claudette, and now there’s a competition to see who can come up with the best variation on that.” 

She suddenly snorted, and Adrien grinned.

“So what are the contenders so far?” he asked.

“Well, the one with the most votes so far is Goonicus Maximus, followed by Goonius Gulliblius Primus, which was Rose’s suggestion. You should have heard her! She put on the most ridiculous Australian accent and imitated Steve Irwin!” Marinette laughed and Adrien had to chuckle.

“I’m sorry I missed it.”

“Oh, but that’s not all. Kim got mad at Alya for suggesting Goonicus Maximus because Maximus has ‘Max’ in it, and he thought we were insulting Max, too.”

Adrien rolled his eyes and snorted. “That’s Kim for you. I bet Max wasn’t worried, was he?”

Marinette snorted again. “No. I really shouldn’t laugh because I know how it feels to be made fun of, but… well, Claudette isn’t here to hear it herself, and it’s funny.” She paused a moment. “Speaking of, how did that go?”

Adrien could hear the returning tension in her voice, but he couldn’t lie to her. “It went pretty much as expected- she tried to convince me you were a horrible jealous bully, and I tried to point out that while Lila had no evidence against you, you had tons of evidence against her. Or, rather, Claudette herself and the others who bullied you openly. She didn’t want to believe it, of course, but I think she’ll at least look into some of it.” He sighed.

“You didn’t threaten her or anything, did you?” 

“No. Well… maybe a little. But all I said was to stay away from you unless she was ready to apologize for what she did,” he hurried to add when he heard Marinette catch her breath a little. 

Marinette sighed in relief. “Thank you.”

Adrien could hear the sincerity in her voice, even as the noise level picked back up in the background. Marinette said, “Well, it looks like everyone’s getting ready to pay and head back to school.”

“Are you going to be okay to come back? I’m sure your teachers will understand if you want to go home for the day.”

“No… no. Thank you, but I have to face this sometime. And honestly, it’s a lot easier knowing you are all on my side this time. Plus, I have two of my art classes this afternoon, and I doubt either Lila or Claudette will be in those. And Alya’s with me last period, so even if they are there…”

Adrien chuckled. “Yeah, I see what you mean. After Alya gave herself away this morning, I don’t think Lila’s going to try bothering you with her around. Okay. Well, if I’m going to meet you out front, I need to head to the cafeteria now. By the time you’re back I’ll be through eating and I can walk you to your next class.”

“Thank you, Adrien!” She said it like it was a complete surprise to her that he would want to spend more time with her than necessary.

“Of course. You are my absolutely gorgeous girlfriend, after all. Can you blame me for wanting another chance to put my hands on you?” he teased. Marinette spluttered something out and he laughed. “I’ll see you soon, Princess.”

Marinette stammered out a goodbye and abruptly hung up the phone, making him chuckle even more. It was so much fun to fluster her…

He continued on to the cafeteria, hoping he could still find something that remotely conformed to his diet. He went through the line fairly quickly and had just spotted a small table that was open when he nearly bumped into someone.

“Oh, I’m so-” he started to say, then stopped. Lila was wearing different clothes, but her hairstyle hadn’t changed from the pictures he’d seen of her. Apparently it was part of her signature look. Adrien felt his expression freeze into something neutral but unwelcoming. “Excuse me,” he said stiffly, and tried to walk around her.

Lila, however, simply slid to the side and blocked him again, a sickly sweet smile on her face. Adrien gritted his teeth and tried again, only to be blocked again.

“Oh, I’m so sorry, we seem to be thinking the same,” she finally said with a little titter. Adrien put on hand in his pocket, wondering if he could manage to activate the recording app without her noticing.

“Well, how about we both go right?” he suggested, already thoroughly done. He’d just put Claudette in her place, and wasn’t in the mood to deal with Lila as well. Besides he needed to eat if he was going to meet Marinette out front.

“Okay!” 

But when Adrien stepped to the right, Lila was right there again. Adrien sighed. Lila raised a hand to her lips and hunched her shoulders in a way that was clearly supposed to be cute and unassuming. “Oh! I thought you meant… well, why don’t we just sit together?” she suggested. “I’m new here, and even though we just met, I’d love to get to know you.”

“Yeah, I don’t think so. I have a girlfriend,” Adrien said. He looked past her to try and find a friendly face who could help him out. He also pulled his phone out and looked at it as if he’d gotten a notification and used the the opportunity to activate the recording app. When he finally looked back up at Lila, her expression had changed completely. Instead of pretending to be super sweet and innocent, she was almost glaring at him.

“I just gave you an opportunity to be my friend,” she said, nearly hissing the words. “But if you’d rather not, don’t blame me for what happens next.” She leaned closer and said, “Marinette doesn’t have to be my only target. I destroyed her once and I can do it again, only this time… she might not be the only one. I’ve already started the ground work, and I can act at any time. Are you really willing to risk your reputation for some baker girl who’s probably only using you to get to your father? This is your last chance. Sit with me and have a pleasant lunch, or I will consider us at war.”

She pulled back and Adrien stared at her coldly. It was a little surprising that she would be so upfront about it- especially since he’d gotten the impression from all the stories about her that she preferred to work through others- but her actual threat didn’t shock him in the least.

He suddenly smiled brightly, which made her take a step back and narrow her eyes a little. “Oh! Well, I’m glad that’s all cleared up. You go right ahead, but I should probably warn you that you’ve never been up against anyone with a team of lawyers at their back. Now, if you’ll  _ finally _ excuse me, I have to eat so I can go meet my girlfriend.”

Lila’s eyes opened wide before she narrowed them into a glare again. “Have it your way,” she hissed. Then suddenly her entire demeanor changed and she slumped into a picture of anguished despair.

“Oh, Adrien,” she wailed, stepping forward and trying to crash into him. Adrien neatly sidestepped that, though and she stumbled past him instead. Adrien took the chance to head toward a table that still had some students sitting at it. He heard a little growl from behind him, but didn’t stop. 

“Adrien, please!” she wailed again. “Just tell me what I did wrong! Is it because I wouldn’t sleep with you? Give me another chance, I’m begging you! Please don’t leave me for Marinette- I know she’s easy, but she’s just using you!  _ Please _ , Adrien!”

Adrien felt his blood begin to boil but made himself continue toward the table. He couldn’t keep the absolutely murderous expression off his face. As he got closer, he did recognize at least two faces- fencing teammates, as it happened. Adrien thanked God for that. 

“Hey Tim, Raquel,” he said loudly, almost throwing his tray onto the table. They’d already been looking his way since Lila had screeched loud enough to attract the attention of everyone still in the cafeteria. They eyed him a little apprehensively and he managed to smile. “Don’t worry about her, she’s just a deluded fan. But just to make it absolutely clear to her that we’ve never been together no matter  _ what _ she thinks… Tim, how long would you say it’s been since I fell in love with Marinette?”

Tim choked on his water, hastily swallowed, and coughed before answering. “Um… I noticed it back in November. Raquel?”

Raquel shot a venomous glare at Lila and said. “You need to get your eyes checked Tim. I noticed him going goo-goo eyed over her at every fencing meet since October. You’re ridiculous, you know,” she added without heat, looking up at Adrien. “And I don’t recognize her, either. You’d think your girlfriend would have been to some of the meets at least, if not a tournament.

“Oh, I know,” Adrien cheerfully agreed, and turned to face Lila. “It’s not going to work. People here know me, and they know I’m loyal. I’ve never been with you, I never even met you until just now.”

Lila, who, to give her credit, hadn’t broken character since she started wailing, dissolved into apparent sobs, but no one was buying it. Instead, Adrien sat down and started a perfectly normal conversation with everyone at the table and ate his lunch. Eventually, Lila noticed she wasn’t getting the reactions from anyone that she was aiming for, and ran out of the cafeteria.

Adrien checked his phone and saw that it was about time to go meet Marinette. He also saw that the app was still recording, so he stopped that and got up. He thanked everyone for backing him up, said he’d see them later, and left.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Sorry for the cut-off sentence, folks! I fixed it. Thank you for bringing it to my attention!


	31. Chapter 31

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Claudette comes to some conclusions. Lila plots.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Just so you know, Lila insults some popular animes in this chapter.

Claudette glared at the little flashdrive on her desk. She had debated with herself for five solid minutes whether to take it and thoroughly disprove what it held… or to leave it in a symbolic gesture of her rejection of everything on it. In the end, she decided to take it. After all, if nothing else, perhaps it could serve as evidence of an intended smear campaign against her best friend.

She seethed, thinking of how she’d almost been willing to think that Marinette might have changed for the better in the months she hadn’t seen Lila, but… she never would have imagined anyone going to such lengths just to destroy a school rival. As for the accusations Adrien had thrown at  _ her _ , well… Marinette must have done something extremely drastic to convince him that she’d tried to commit suicide over a few well-deserved beatings. Yet something deep inside her squirmed whenever she thought of that accusation. That same thing pushed memories at her: of Marinette’s frightened face, her pleas for them to stop, the tears, and how she’d eventually just taken the beating in relative silence, as if resigned to her fate. 

It was that last that had made Claudette consider calling off the beatings in the first place. But then Marinette had left school and… it hadn’t been an issue anymore. The beatings had accomplished what they were supposed to- Marinette no longer bullied Lila. Even if the beatings were why Marinette had transferred to a different lycee, Claudette couldn’t believe that they had been bad enough to cause anyone to try killing themselves. No. No, there had to be some other explanation.

As for what happened to Tikki- no. She couldn’t agree that Tikki deserved that. That was going too far, and she’d even  _ told _ Adrien as much- she hadn’t even been involved! It was all due to Suzanne’s insane crush on Lila and the jealousy she must have felt over hearing about her and Ad-... 

Well, it must have been for a different reason then. Perhaps it was that she was just tired of seeing Tikki and Plagg plotting against Lila. Or… Lila had been hinting pretty heavily that she didn’t think Plagg was a good boyfriend for anyone, even Tikki. Claudette winced away from that thought. Personally, Tikki and Plagg had seemed like an ordinary couple to Claudette, who, after all, knew perfectly well that those bruises on Tikki were from Lila’s friends, and not from Plagg. Whether  _ Lila _ knew that, though… hm. Maybe some of the blame did fall on Claudette. If she’d spoken up, admitted that those bruises were from them trying with Tikki what had worked so well with Marinette, maybe Lila would have left Plagg alone and Suzanne wouldn’t have thought up that plan. And then the school wouldn’t have closed, and Claudette would never have had her faith in her friend tested so… insistently.

Claudette glared at the flashdrive again. It sat there, taunting her. Daring her to plug it in and have all her illusions shattered. Whether those illusions were about Lila or Marinette and Adrien, she didn’t want to consider. 

Still.

Adrien had seemed pretty adamant that he and Lila never dated, that he’d never even met her before. And though Lila had seemed subdued when Claudette finally met back up with her after lunch, she hadn’t said anything. Claudette figured things were just catching up with her. Even if it wasn’t about Adrien, she was still going to school with Marinette again, and that had to be frustrating, if not frightening. At least Lila didn’t have any classes with Marinette. 

Claudette turned her attention from the flashdrive to her computer. She opened her browser, intending to check some social media before getting started on homework, but… the google search bar centered the page and almost without thinking about it, Claudette entered the name of one of Lila’s favorite charities.

Nothing came back. Under her search was a list of websites all dedicated to something similar, but not the exact charity Claudette was looking for. But under her search terms was the little prompt asking if she hadn’t meant  _ this other charity? _

Claudette stared at it. Then, determined, she entered another charity, double checking the spelling from an old text from Lila that she spent a good ten minutes scrolling to find. Again, the search didn’t turn up anything except charities with similar goals but different names.

Claudette frowned. Why would Lila tell them the wrong name? She’d been collecting for charities for as long as Claudette had known her, surely she knew the importance of giving people the right name… right?

Following an impulse, she called Lila.

“Hey,” she said, when Lila picked up. “Listen, my parents just increased my allowance since I’m doing so well in school, and I wanted to donate to one of your charities- the one for shutting down puppy mills- and I can’t find the website. Maybe I wrote it down wrong. Can you tell me again?”

“Oh… wow, Claudette, that’s so kind of you!” Lila said, sounding excited. “But you know, I was going to send in my own annual donation this week. If you like, you can just give it to me, and I’ll send yours in with mine.”

Claudette’s heart skipped a beat. The lie sprang into her mind fully formed and slid off her tongue like oiled sardines. “Oh. Well, actually mom and dad wanted me to start keeping track of where I’m spending money. We’ll be graduating soon, and they want to make sure I’m financially prepared- you know, making budgets and all that- and I found this really cool app that tracks all of that, but you have to scan in your receipts. So, I really need like an e-receipt or something.” 

“Oh,” Lila said, and Claudette tried really hard not to hear the note of withdrawal in her tone. “Well… actually let me just check something.” Claudette could hear faint clicking sounds in the background, and what appeared to be Lila muttering to herself.  “Of course it had to be now… couldn’t just take me at my word, oh no… this is all I need…”

Claudette tried not to gasp and simply waited. 

“Oh no,” Lila said after a minute or two. “Oh I’m so sorry Claudette. It looks like they didn’t get enough donations last year to stay open. They’ve closed down. But I could steer you toward another really great charity if you want!”

Claudette stared at her own google search. Even if the charity had closed its doors, some trace of its presence should have remained online, even a defunct website. Or a mention in an article or blog somewhere. But there was nothing.

“Thanks, Lila,” she heard herself say. “But you know how personal donations can be. I think I’ll do some research on my own.”

“Oh… okay,” Lila said, this time sounding a little hurt. “Only… you know how much time and effort I put into charities. I just thought you might want my advice, that’s all.”

“No, I get it,” Claudette said. “But if I really want to learn, it’s time for me to do it on my own, right? After all,” she added, hating herself for what she was about to say, “that’s how you started out, right? I’m just following in your footsteps.” She winced as soon as it was out, but… now that it was, she wasn’t going to backtrack either. 

“Awww!” Lila cooed and Claudette winced again. “That’s so sweet of you! But really, I’m happy to steer you the right way just at first. After all, there are a whole lot of phony charities out there, and I’d just hate for you to throw your money away on something like that.”

Claudette planted her left elbow on her desk, resisting the urge to banging her fist on it. How could she be so stupid? So… blind? “Of course not, Lila. You know me. I’ll be careful.”

“Well… if you insist,” Lila said, clearly trying to convey that Claudette was about to make a mistake. “I’m just saying that any money given to me will be used in a good cause…”

“Thanks again,” Claudette said, as cheerfully as she could. “But I really do need a receipt and I’m afraid a handwritten one just won’t do. I’ll talk to you later, ok? And if not, I’ll see you tomorrow at school,” she added, hoping that she’d have better control over her reactions by then.

“All right! See you tomorrow!” Lila chirped. Claudette hung up and laid her head down on her desk. After a few minutes of deep breathing while she attempted to assimilate and process what she’d just discovered she sat up, wiped her eyes, and picked up her phone again.

She still had Robere’s number. She bit her lip, wondering whether to call or text him… assuming he hadn’t blocked her number or gotten a different phone number himself…

She pinched her eyes shut and decided on a text.

[Claudette] Hey, is this number still Robere?

An agonizing five whole minutes passed before she got a response.

[Robere] Yes, it’s me, Claudette.

Claudette read his text over and over again before hesitantly typing a reply.

[Claudette] Look I know I don’t deserve this, but can I ask you something?

[Robere] Sure.

[Claudette] Were you really just trying to get in my pants?

Claudette sat in her desk chair, eyes shut and one hand over her mouth, waiting for the buzz from her phone so she could read his reply. What she was not expecting was for the phone to ring, instead.

Shakily, she answered. “Hello?”

“So,” Robere said, on the other end. “I guess you finally figured out the truth about Lila.”

Claudette burst into tears.

\----

Lila puttered around the small kitchen of their apartment, pondering how to proceed. Her mom was still at the embassy- as usual- so it was going to be dinner for one again tonight. As much as Lila relied on her friends for outings on the weekends and after school, she couldn’t bring herself to either invite them over for dinner or accept invitations of that nature. A party? Sure, the bigger and louder, the better. But just eating together in a family setting? Not so much. And her apartment bore no resemblance to the home she’d described to her friends, so...

Lila made herself a sandwich and a bowl of soup and went back to her room to watch mindless youtube videos while she tried to decide how best to destabilize Marinette this time. She was doing research on Adrien, as well- specifically, mining his instagram and twitter for fodder. He was quite opinionated when he wasn’t putting on the golden-model-boy persona for his dad. Honestly, she preferred the persona. It came across as a boy who was eager and willing to please- exactly the kind of guy Lila would have found easiest to manipulate. 

Of course, that would also have made him boring to date, but Lila didn’t care much about that. A biddable boyfriend was there when you wanted him and happy to sit at home when you didn’t and that was the kind of relationship Lila wanted if she had to have one at all. No compromising, no having to give up the things she liked in order to support him in any way. But the Adrien she was learning about, the Adrien who came out online, was a far different creature.

He was still polite, but he definitely had opinions on things like consent and respecting boundaries, and the awesomeness (his word) of anime. Lila rolled her eyes. In a way it was a good thing Adrien had proven resistant to her. If he hadn’t she might have been forced to watch endless marathons of Battle Idiots and My No-Good Hero, or perhaps Full Metal Angst and whatever that one was about the ghost in the bathroom. Hanako-Lame. Seriously. A whole series about some ghost that got stuck in a toilet stall somehow? Lila scoffed to herself. People were entirely too easily entertained.  _ Of course, _ she thought with a smirk,  _ that just makes it easier for me, so perhaps it’s not such a bad thing after all. _

Claudette hadn’t said much after lunch, and though Lila had asked, she hadn’t said where she’d been during lunch, either. Lila already knew Marinette had not been on campus at all, and when she’d come back, she’d been surrounded by people. Lila supposed she would have to call them her friends. She sneered. Friends were weaknesses. That was a lesson Lila had learned long ago- now she only had allies and followers, not friends. But a sly grin began to take over as she clicked on yet another stupidly cute hamster maze video. Of course. The way to attack Marinette was through her friends. And her boyfriend of course.

Lila thought it through. She’d have to threaten Marinette first, of course, to make sure the girl would understand what it meant when all her friends suddenly began to have difficulties. Which meant getting her alone somehow. Well, there was time for strategy. And no doubt Claudette would help, too. She’d bought the lie about Adrien and Marinette readily that morning, hadn’t she? It would be no big stretch for Lila to suggest that Marinette had told all kinds of untrue horror stories to her friends about her, and that those friends needed to be shown the truth in the meantime. 

She grimaced as she realized Claudette was basically alone. She didn’t have all the others to lend her their support and manpower, to be honest. Physical means of intimidation weren’t really feasible this time, as satisfying as that type was. But perhaps there was another way… if she could convince Adrien’s fangirls that he was being misled… that Marinette was bad for him in some way… another sly grin made a home for itself on her face. She would crucify both Marinette and Adrien in the court of public opinion, and eventually all her new friends would abandon her, just like all the others had.

It was almost a pity, though. If only Marinette had chosen a different school to attend. Or… Lila scowled, suddenly reminded of the fact that if not for Claudette, she could have just kept a low profile. After all, she didn’t share any classes with Marinette. And while she was sure that Marinette had probably told her friends all about her, if Lila had done  _ nothing _ , and just ignored Marinette while they attended the same school… well. There was nothing like no reaction at all to prove to her friends that Marinette had made up the whole thing. And no surer defense than pretending she’d never even met Marinette if the girl had confronted her at some point.

Yet, thanks to the presence of Claudette, who knew all about Marinette’s supposed jealousy of Lila, she was forced to act along the same lines she’d used for years. Oh well. Marinette was going to be the one suffering, either way.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Shorter chapter, but it was a good place to break.


	32. Chapter 32

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Lila plots and worries. Marinette makes plans of her own.

The next morning, Lila noticed that Claudette seemed to be subdued again. But when she tried to ask why, Claudette shied away from the question.

“Please just leave it, Lila,” she said, holding up a hand. “I’m… not ready to talk about it yet.”

“Oh,” Lila said, making sure to inject a little hurt into her response. Here she was, actually trying to care about her ally and she was being pushed away? How rude. But she changed the subject because she had to keep up appearances.

“I’ve decided to just try and ignore Marinette and Adrien,” she said, trying for a vulnerable tone. “I mean… It’s not fair, but sometimes boys are just jerks, right? There’s no reason to try and get even. I do wish people knew the truth, though… He shouldn’t have been so loving with me if he was just going to drop me as soon as he knew I wouldn’t sleep with him,” she said, every inch the desolated but persevering righteous girl. “I mean, I almost feel like warning Marinette… but she wouldn’t listen to me,” she finished as sadly as she could manage. “It’s like Tikki and Plagg all over again.”

Claudette turned her head and stared at her for a long moment, an unreadable expression on her face. Alarm bells went off in Lila’s head as she tried to interpret that look. Then she remembered- how could she have forgotten?!- how very wrong that particular scheme had gone. Suzanna had been the only one to take her hints at face value, and though her execution had been nearly perfect, it had all blown up in her face. Lila hadn’t seen her since- or any of Suzanna’s crew, really. She knew through the grape-vine that they were all being held until the trial, and though she had mentioned going to see her to their friend group, she hadn’t so much as looked up where they were being held. 

Lila felt something like panic course through her. Not actual panic, of course, she was too clever and too sure of herself to  _ panic _ . But it did mean she would have to do something she hated more than anything in the world.

“Of course,” she said with a bright smile, gritting her teeth, “I was so glad to be proven wrong that time! Maybe it will turn out okay this time, too!”

Claudette eyed her for a moment longer, then turned her face away and said, “Did you finish the reading last night? I was kind of distracted looking for charities to donate to and I forgot.”

Lila’s heart pounded, relieved that Claudette wasn’t going to push it, but she had to suppress a frown at the same time. What was wrong with that girl today? Usually, she would have said something reassuring or sympathized with her… 

“Um, yeah,” Lila lied. “It was pretty simple and straightforward,” she said, trying to remember just what it was they’d been assigned to read and for what class. Her mind felt disconnected and jumpy. “I’m sure you’ll be fine- we’re a little early today so you can finish it up before class starts.”

Claudette just nodded, and Lila wondered again what was bothering her.

\----

  
  


Marinette was on edge all week. But even though there were a few kind souls, two from Adrien’s fencing team as well, who quietly warned her about what Lila had said in the lunchroom, nothing else happened.

Adrien had told her how Lila had first tried to force a meet-cute moment, and when that failed, she’d threatened him. And then immediately tried to make good on her threat. It was just a good thing that Adrien was well known and liked and that no one was likely to believe an unknown girl- especially not when they discovered she was from  _ that _ lycee- but it was something that could all too easily be picked up by the media who, no doubt, wouldn’t let it fade away quickly since it would be such a juicy bit of scandal.

But everything seemed quiet. Lila was… not precisely  _ avoiding _ them, since Marinette caught a sight of her out of the corner of her eye more than a few times a day as they moved back and forth to classes, but she was leaving them alone. At least, Marinette had also caught Lila visibly flinching whenever she saw them, and pointedly turning away from them. It worried her, because she knew how much Lila depended on the people around her jumping to the “obvious” conclusions she carefully steered them toward. And her current behavior looked like she was trying to double down on her claim that Adrien had dated her first and then dropped her for Marinette. And the longer this went on, the more people would begin to consider if there was a grain of truth to it, despite what they knew of both Adrien and Marinette. Lila’s lies were insidious like that.

As for Claudette, she seemed to be following Lila’s lead. She had even stopped glaring at Marinette when she came into their physics class, and Marinette didn’t feel like there were eyes boring into the back of her head, either. So she didn’t know what to think. 

It seemed that Lila and Claudette had mutually decided to back off. But in the back of her mind, Marinette still expected an attack of some kind.

About midway through the second week, Marinette began to suspect that Lila was trying to get her alone. She had seen her pretty consistently during the first week of school as their paths crossed in the halls. But suddenly, the second week, she began seeing Lila pop up randomly. She wasn’t the only one to notice, either, and Alya reminded everyone to stick close to Marinette. 

However…

“How mad would you be if Lila did manage to catch me alone?” Marinette asked Adrien, trying for an idle tone while they made their way to the cafeteria with Juleka and Rose in front of them.

Adrien turned to her sharply. “Why?”

“Because…” Marinette hesitated. She’d thought about it a lot- had been thinking about what her response would be ever since that meeting before school started. And while the thought scared her, it didn’t scare her to the point of being unable to act, not anymore. “Because I was thinking that maybe we should… let her.”

“What.” Adrien bit off the word and Marinette winced. “Princess, how could you even suggest something like that?”

“I’m… I’ve been thinking that she’s not going to try anything openly unless she feels like she has the upper hand somehow. And as long as she appears to be just minding her own business, while at the same time acting like a heartbroken, betrayed teenager, people are going to start wondering if there might not be something behind it. If we let it go too long, she’s going to start dropping hints that she and I have a history- and she’ll probably heavily hint at a history of bullying and let them draw their own conclusions.” Marinette sighed. “I’d rather not let her build up a power base, or even a base of plausibility. Kagami is right about that- it’s hard to fight back against someone who refuses to come out into the open. You can only counter what they let you see and they tend to be one step ahead because you never know when exactly they’re going to act. You end up always reacting instead of taking decisive action.”

Adrien put a hand on her shoulder, stopping them both. He studied her face for a long moment before sighing heavily.

“I can see your point,” he said slowly. “And if you feel like it’s a good idea…” His face contorted in a grimace. “You know I never want to see you hurting. I want to protect you but… I have to admit that I can’t. Not always. And realistically, I shouldn’t. You are anything but weak Marinette, and you’ve made a lot of progress since last year. If you feel like you can do this, then… as much as I hate to say it, maybe you should.”

Marinette felt her heart melting all over again. It was clear that Adrien  _ did not _ like her suggestion, but he wasn’t going to keep her from doing something she thought she could do, even if he thought it was dangerous. He had such faith in her… it made her want to measure up to that faith, to prove him right.

“I just wish I could do it for you,” he said, pulling her into a hug. Marinette relaxed into it. “But if anything, Lila’s been avoiding me even more than you. Besides, I’ve already got a recording of her threatening me personally. I suppose we should have one of her threatening you personally, too, just to round things out.”

“Well,” Marinette said, smiling despite the topic. “I did have a few thoughts on that. I think it would be a good idea to have recordings from several people of the same event- just to make clear that no one is messing with the audio.” She pulled back enough to press a kiss to his lips. Nothing heated or dramatic, just enough to let him know he was appreciated. And it felt so nice that she was tempted- very tempted- to find an empty classroom. But… their friends were waiting for them, and part of the PR advice she’d gotten from Gabriel’s advisor was to never let themselves be caught trying to find some privacy in a public space, unless it was something like a private room at a restaurant or something like that. So instead, she stepped away. “Let’s go to lunch, and we can talk it over with everyone, ok?”

Adrien looked so dazed by even that quick kiss that Marinette couldn’t help a little giggle, and a few more escaped her when she had to pull him after her.

\----

Lila was getting very frustrated. Marinette was always with at least one other person, and while that had never really been an issue when Tikki was shadowing Marinette, that had been back in  _ her _ school, where she could control the narrative much easier. No one here trusted her yet, and that accusation against Adrien the first day had had the effect of making people look sideways at  _ her _ , instead of at Adrien. But again, she’d done that before she’d gotten to know much about Adrien other than what was in his press releases. 

So she was reluctantly forced to adopt a strategy of patience. She did make sure to look properly betrayed whenever she saw either Adrien or Marinette, with the effect that people’s sideways looks at her were beginning to have a hint of curiosity in them. It was progress, but it was slow, and though she did enjoy that she could still influence people when they didn’t entirely trust her, she also wanted to bury Marinette under so much damning rumor that no one would ever even mention her name again.

Claudette also continued to worry her. The girl had yet to return to her previous supportive behavior, but she still continued to talk to Lila and to try and act like nothing was wrong. But Lila knew how to read people, and the fact that Claudette seemed to freeze up or change the subject every time Lila brought up something she’d previously lied about, was very worrying indeed. But if Claudette had caught on- finally- Lila couldn’t imagine why she would continue to hang out with her. She was pretty sure that if Claudette ever found out just how much she’d been lied to, she would scream at her, possibly attack her physically, and then cut off all further contact. After all, Lila had manipulated her into doing some pretty sketchy things over the years. She was the type of person to hold that against her.

It didn’t even occur to her that Claudette might have a different agenda.

\----

Marinette headed- alone- to the same bathroom she’d used for the past three days right before the end of school. She knew Lila had been watching her, and she was hoping it wouldn’t be too much longer before Lila took advantage of her apparent vulnerability.

This particular bathroom wasn’t used much at the end of the school day. Marinette had picked this one for several reasons: it was rarely used, and it was close to the gym, where she’d been going after school to watch Adrien and Kagami fence. There was a major tournament coming up and they were training hard. Marinette liked to watch- they had a strange mix of camaraderie and rivalry going on when they fenced. She was hoping to capture that feeling in a sketch one day soon.

But before then… she took her phone out and sent a quick text, and kept her phone in her hand as she opened the door. There was no garrauntee that Lila would actually be there, of course.

“Hello, Marinette.”

Marinette froze halfway through the door when she heard Lila’s syrupy sweet voice saying her name. She drew deep from the well of self-confidence she’d been steadily filling bucket by bucket over the last nine months.

“Lila,” Marinette said as she stepped into the bathroom. She quickly tapped the recording app before, hopefully, Lila could notice. She wondered what Lila would do about the phone in her hand, if she even noticed it. Lila had been leaning back against the sink counter by the door, but she stood up and shifted to stand between Marinette and the rest of the bathroom.

“Excuse me,” Marinette said, as calmly as she could and tried to move past her. Again, Lila blocked her path.

“You seem to think you’re untouchable, Marinette,” Lila said sweetly. “I’m afraid that just won’t do. I’m very sure you’ve been spreading rumors about me to everyone who will listen, including Adrien, and well… that was a mistake.”

“Telling the truth is a mistake now?” Marinette retorted. 

Lila smiled coldly. “For you? Always.”

Marinette swallowed. “Come on, Lila. This is ridiculous. Surely you can put a silly childhood grudge behind you. Just leave me alone! Move on with your life!” 

She tightened her grip on her phone, and Lila’s eyes flicked down. It took only a second for her to reach out and grab the phone. Without a blink she tossed it over her shoulder. It spun briefly through the air before landing on the tiles with a sickening crack.

“Well,” Marinette said, licking her lips. “At the very least, I think you owe me a new phone.”

Lila smirked. “Oh Marinette. People drop their phones every day. You can’t blame me for your own clumsiness.”

“That’s funny, Lila,” Marinette retorted, her voice strengthening as anger eased her fear. “I’ve only ever been clumsy around you or your friends.  _ That _ character trait completely disappeared when I no longer had people constantly shoving or tripping me. I tell you, it’s positively miraculous how coordinated I am now.”

Lila actually laughed. “Oh Marinette, it’s so cute how you think you’re safe just because you left! You really think this school is any better than ours? You don’t have any power here. I broke your phone, so there won’t be any convenient recordings of this for you to turn in, and we’re completely alone- I checked. I can say or do anything, and it will only be your word against mine. Oh, but wait. It won’t really, because  _ I _ have dozens of people willing to swear that you’ve bullied me for years! And you? All you have is some stupid kids who have only known you for a few months. All I have to do is give myself a couple of bruises, maybe tear my clothes a little, and you will be right back to where you were. All your little friends will desert you- just like they did before. And your boyfriend? Before long I’ll have him completely convinced that  _ you _ are the lying brat instead of me.”

“M-my friends wouldn’t desert me like that,” Marinette bit out, gritting her teeth so they wouldn’t chatter. “And Adrien knows better, after you threatened him last week.”

“That?” Lila scoffed. “You know, I’ve found that people have very short memories when I want them to. But on the other hand, you might be right. I think your little friends might just find that things don’t go so smoothly for them anymore. My friends might not attend this lycee, but that doesn’t mean they don’t still have connections. And I might have to spread some rumors about Adrien, too, just to make sure everyone knows the  _ real state _ of things. I wonder if his father would pull him out of school if it got out that he tried to rape me?” 

Marinette went cold. “Why are you like this?” she asked, hardly able to believe anyone could be that… horrible. “Why do you hate me so much that you’ll try to ruin someone else’s life just because they like me? Wasn’t what you did to Tikki and to Plagg enough? Seriously, what have I- what did  _ we _ \- ever do to you to deserve this… this antagonism?”

Lila placed one hand on her cocked hip and smiled almost pityingly at Marinette before her expression dropped entirely.

“It’s simple,” Lila said coldly. “This is how it works: I tell people what they want to hear, and in return, they do things for me. Really, it’s a wonderful system- everyone gets something they want out of it! But  _ you _ messed that up- or tried to, anyway- when you  _ insisted _ on telling people that I had lied. I tried to give you a chance to make the right choice, but did you? No. You were too busy being a goody-two-shoes to think about the consequences.”

Marinette gaped at her. “How is going around lying and manipulating people doing anything for anyone but yourself? How can you be so selfish?”

“I prefer to think of it as goal-oriented. But you know, I should be thanking you,” Lila said, backing off a bit and smiling again. “The last few years of school wouldn’t have been nearly as much fun if  _ no one _ knew the truth. It’s a pity you dropped out last year. You should have come back- I had more plans for you.”

Marinette couldn’t find anything to say to that. Finally, she took a deep breath and spoke. “Wow. You need a whole lot of professional help Lila. Do you honestly think you can rule this school the way you did the other? You don’t have your support system of gullible groupies and blind teachers anymore.”

Lila chuckled darkly. “Well, you are right about that, and I do hate to do all the work myself. But then, there is something to be said for doing it myself. It can be very… satisfying.”

As she said that, she lunged forward. Marinette successfully dodged, holding up her hands defensively. All the old fear rose up and threatened to overwhelm her, but... but this time, she had months of Kagami and Alix talking her through worst case scenarios to draw on. This time, she had self-defense classes to draw on. This time she had the mental strength to shove the fear down and try to think. Lila was alone- it was one against one, instead of four or six against one. Marinette might get a bruise or two, but this time she was determined to inflict some herself. 

Of course, that was when Rose launched herself at Lila with a shriek of pure rage. For one shocked moment Marinette was as surprised to see her as Lila, but then she remembered what the plan had been and she relaxed all at once, feeling a little light-headed.

That was the other reason she’d selected this bathroom. It had an extra door leading into the gym, and the one to the gym was hidden behind a curtain wall for modesty’s sake. Marinette knew from experience that if you didn’t know it was there it was hard to spot, since the lighting disguised any obvious shadows. Lila had checked the stalls before taking up her position, yes, but she hadn’t checked for any extra entrances, and Marinette and her friends had made sure that door to the gym did not squeak when opened. The plan had been that Marinette would text when she was about to enter the bathroom, and the other two in the gym would then go through and stay hidden behind the modesty wall, so Lila wouldn’t see them and switch personas on them.

And it had worked. It had worked so well that Marinette still felt a little shaky thinking back through it. How anyone could be so menacing and wear such a sweet smile was beyond her, but Lila had certainly pulled it off. It had been a long time since Marinette had seen that smirk on her face, since Lila had mainly relied on playing the victim to Marinette’s bully since college.

  
  
  


For a few minutes all Marinette could really register was Juleka’s comforting presence and the cracked casing of the phone in her hand, which Juleka had picked up for her. A few hot tears escaped, but that was all. She was glad to have it over with. With at least two recordings, both of them matching, there was no way Lila could wiggle her way out of this.

By the time Marinette had composed herself, Rose had Lila pinned against the wall, with one arm twisted behind her back to keep her under control. And she was still yelling.

“-- never get away with it! Marinette is one of the kindest people I’ve ever met, and you are nothing but a nasty lying liar!” she screamed. “Prince Ali would never ask you to help with anything, but especially not a charity! How dare you use his name and reputation! How dare you try to bully my friend?”

Marinette blinked and thought about rubbing her eyes in disbelief, because Rose was at least a head shorter than Lila... but she had no trouble keeping Lila under control. Still…

“Rose,” Marinette said, finding renewed strength and straightening up under Juleka’s arm. “Thank you. Really, thank you. But you should let her go, now. You don’t want to be accused of being a bully yourself.”

Rose glared at her, and Marinette was surprised to see tears swimming in those big blue eyes.

“She threatened you! She insulted us, and she was going to try and hurt you again, and accuse Adrien-”

“I know,” Marinette said calmly, walking slowly toward her. “But just because she’s a bad person doesn’t mean we have to be.”

With one more vindictive shove, Rose let go of Lila’s arm and retreated to Juleka, who patted her back and offered a black embroidered handkerchief. For a moment Lila didn’t turn around. But when she did, her face was pale and Marinette could see she was afraid, even if she was trying not to show it.

“You think you can get the better of me?” Lila challenged, crossing her arms. “The three of you against my word?” She scoffed. “Don’t get your hopes up. All I have to do is cry and claim that you three attacked me.”

Juleka stared her down. “Oh, it’s not going to be our  _ word _ against yours. It’s going to be  _ your _ word against  _ our _ audio recordings.” She and Rose both waggled their phones at her, careful to keep them out of reach. “And if I’m not wrong, you only shattered Marinette’s phone screen and cracked the case, so I’m thinking  _ her _ recording should be ok, too.”

Lila’s eyes widened and she started breathing faster. Her gaze fixed on Marinette. “You. You did this. You set me up,” she accused in a low angry voice.

But Marinette just smiled sadly. “I didn’t do anything. We just took some precautions in case you decided to be stupid and threaten me again. Which you just did.”

Lila glared at them all for another long moment before shoving past them to the door. “This isn’t over,” she promised, before trying to slam the door behind her. But since the door was on a hydraulic hinge, it didn’t work. She half-turned, as if to try and pull the door closed, but there was no handle on that side of the door, so she slapped it angrily and sped off down the hall.

Rose and Juleka hugged Marinette between them.

“I am soooo sorry, Marinette,” Rose squeaked. “I just can’t believe anyone would choose to be so horrible! And I’m sorry I lost my temper like that, but the things she said were just too awful, and then it looked like she was going to try and hurt you and-”

“I tried to hold her back,” Juleka drawled, “but when Rose gets like this there’s only so much you can do. Usually she only gets this worked up about the injustices in our society, but…” Juleka indicated her and the still slowly closing door with one hand.

Marinette laughed shakily. “Well. At least it’s over now. And we got good recordings, too.”

Both of them nodded. Marinette stepped back and they released her. “Thank you both. Really.”

Rose shook her head. “Don’t worry about it Marinette. If it had happened yesterday, it would have been Alya and Mylene, and they would have done the same thing.”

“In fact, Alya might just have murdered her,” Juleka said. “So it’s probably a good thing it was us.”

“But still,” Marinette sighed. “I should probably go into the gym and make sure Adrien and Kagami aren’t too worried.”

“We’ll come with you,” Rose offered, back to her usual sweet disposition. “We’re only going to Juleka’s to work on homework- it’s okay if we leave a little later.”

Marinette smiled. “Thanks. Could I ask you to kind of downplay what happened, though? I… don’t want either Adrien or Kagami doing something rash.”

Juleka and Rose exchanged a look. “Sure, Marinette.”

“Ok. Here we go then,” Marinette said, and led the way through the door to the gym.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I was really tempted to include some Adrienette at the end here, but it's already super long, and the scene just wouldn't stop unless I cut it off. So that'll be the beginning of the next chapter.


	33. Chapter 33

Adrien and Kagami were in the middle of a bout, Kagami steadily advancing as Adrien gave ground, both of them making lightning attacks. After a quick exchange Kagami got a touch and a buzzer sounded. Adrien’s half of the score box lit up in red, signifying a touch. Kagami felt a mixture of pride and frustration. They were both worried about Marinette, yes, but Kagami was using that emotion to sharpen her senses and quicken her attacks, whereas Adrien was, to her experienced eye, simply letting it distract him.

They relaxed their en guard positions and pushed their masks up, and only then did they both glance across the space to the bathroom door. Kagami was both relieved and concerned to see all three of them emerge from the bathroom. That could only mean Lila had taken the bait. As soon as Adrien saw Juleka and Rose with Marinette he dropped his foil and mask, unhooked his lead, and jogged towards them. Without asking anything, he simply hugged Marinette.

Kagami approached more slowly. “I take it everything went as expected?” she asked, noting the signs of distress on all the girls’ faces.

Juleka and Rose nodded. “Yeah. Lila’s awful, just like Marinette told us. The things she  _ said _ ! What she threatened to do…!” Rose clenched her fists and scowled, only for Juleka to reach around from behind her and slide her own hands into Rose’s, making her deflate rather suddenly.

Kagami just nodded. “And what did happen? Did she attack Marinette physically as well?” Kagami shot a look over to Marinette, still wrapped up in Adrien’s embrace. She did not appear to be hiding injuries. As she watched, Adrien kissed the top of her head and murmured something too low to hear. Marinette responded by trying to hold him even closer. Kagami caught the small smile on Adrien’s face and decided that all was well for now and no one needed to be murdered just yet.

“Well, she did try,” Juleka said before Rose could get riled up again. “But Marinette dodged and, I guess, went into some kind of defensive crouch, but then Rose let out her inner tiger and pounced. Lila didn’t stand a chance.”

That got a giggle out of the reluctant Rose. “Then we confronted Lila about our recordings, and she got mad and left,” Rose finished.

“Good,” Kagami said, nodding sharply. “In that case… Adrien!”

Adrien tilted his head slightly from where he was resting his chin on top of Marinette’s head and cracked one eyelid open.

“Marinette is fine, and your performance the last few passes has been dismal. Can you concentrate now, or should we simply cancel the rest of this practice?”

Adrien sighed heavily and reluctantly stepped back from Marinette, letting his gloved hands slide down her arms to her hands. “I suppose I should,” he said. But Kagami smiled at him. 

“No. I think you will do better tomorrow for taking a night off. Why don’t we all go somewhere for an early dinner?” she suggested, much to everyone’s surprise. “It may be too early to celebrate our enemy’s defeat, but she has certainly suffered a set-back today.”

“But what about your mother, Kagami?” Marinette asked. “Won’t she expect you to focus on training?”

“Mother is strict with my training, and does not accept weakness or distraction as adequate excuses for a poor performance. But she also recognizes that peaking too soon is a risk all athletes face when they train to compete. I can explain this lapse in a way she will understand and respect.”

Marinette smiled at her. “Ok.” 

She then turned that smile on Adrien, who got that stupid goofy grin on his own face in response. Kagami resisted the urge to roll her eyes. It was probably a good thing he’d never pursued her romantically. She wasn’t sure she could have respected him after seeing that expression leveled at her. He and Marinette were a good match, though, and Kagami smiled to herself, thinking that, perhaps she had already found a match of her own. It was too soon to tell, and they had yet to go on an actual date, but... she was hopeful.

\----

Claudette watched Lila storm down the hall after coming out of the bathroom. She was clearly in a rage, and Claudette reflected that she should have been much more suspicious over the years of their friendship that she’d never seen Lila display much anger at all. She’d never gotten visibly angry at all the supposed bullying, only crying and wailing about it. On the other hand, she’d often seen both Tikki and Marinette angry over the- she winced- bullying they had both endured. Crying yes, but angry tears. Railing at the unfairness of it all. 

Oh, Lila had pretended that she didn’t understand why they would target her, but she’d apparently been so focused on making everyone believe her to be the victim that she hadn’t taken into account how a real victim might react in the same situation.

Claudette sighed heavily and left the building through another door leading outside, bracing herself for the blast of frigid wind and the bite in the air. It wasn’t snowing yet, but it was supposed to later that night. 

Lila had told her she had a teacher to talk to about a prospective charity drive, and said it would only take a few minutes and could Claudette please stick around and wait. Of course, when Claudette had asked for more details about the proposed charity that would benefit, and even offered to come along and lend her voice to the scheme, Lila had hemmed and hawed, and eventually evaded the question. And now she knew for sure Lila had intended to ambush Marinette all along. Once Claudette had seen Marinette go into the same bathroom Lila had entered shortly before, she had gone closer to see if she could hear anything. However, the door was too thick to make anything out, so she’d backed off to avoid notice when either of them left.

And just the way Lila left told her that it hadn’t gone down the way Lila wanted. That filled her with a strange mix of satisfaction, disappointment, and relief. If Lila had seemed pleased or happy when she left, Claudette would have felt obligated to go in and check on Marinette, which would have been very awkward. 

She still wasn’t ready to approach either Tikki or Marinette- hench her apprehension about possibly needing to intervene. In time, she might be able to actually talk to the girls she’d had such a large part in hurting for so long, and then she could apologize. Right now, though… she just felt too ashamed. She was sure that if either one of them confronted her, she wouldn’t be able to say anything at all. 

Claudette hurried around the outside of the school, knowing that Lila’s locker was on the other side of the building from that particular bathroom, and she would need to retrieve her things before coming out the front door. If she was fast enough, she could beat Lila there and catch her breath again.

Luck favored her. She’d just gotten her breath back and was stamping her feet to keep them warm when Lila came out. Claudette eyed her, trying to get a good read on her current mood. Now that she was looking behind the smile, she was starting to be able to recognize what Lila was covering up with that smile. This time her smile was stretched a little too wide, teeth gritted, eyebrows raised a little too high for an unconscious expression. Lila was still raging.

“Hey,” Claudette said, forcing a smile to her own unwilling face.  _ This time _ , she thought.  _ Maybe this time, she’ll tell me the truth.  _ “How did it go? Is the teacher going to endorse the drive?”

“No,” Lila pouted, eyes narrowing. Claudette felt a chill that had nothing to do with the weather. “I couldn’t get him to agree. He said he needed official paperwork, and I tried to tell him that it’s all available online, but he didn’t believe me!”

“I’m sorry,” Claudette said, then paused before adding, “Maybe if I’d been there, I could have changed his mind. You know sometimes two voices are better than one.”

But Lila scoffed. “After you refused to take my suggestions for your own donation last week? No thanks.”

Claudette stopped dead, staring at Lila. Lila kept walking for a few beats before noticing that Claudette wasn’t beside her anymore. She turned, pouting back at her, breath puffing white. “Well? Are you coming?”

And that was the moment when Claudette finally admitted to herself that Lila… probably didn’t care about her beyond what Claudette could do for her. If she had… she would have done more about Claudette’s abstracted mood for the last week. She would have pushed harder to learn what was bothering her, and perhaps even confessed to what she was doing. She would have collected for actual charities instead of making up fake ones and doing who knew what with the money she got for them.

“Go on,” Claudette heard herself say. “I forgot… I have to go by the store for my mom.” She held her breath a moment, wondering if Lila would buy the lie. But Lila just pouted a little more.

“Can’t it wait? We were going to go for hot chocolate.” 

Claudette could hear a distinct whine in that syrupy voice. She shook her head.

“Sorry. It’s… on the other side of town- they’re the only market that has the brand mom wants. I’m sorry. She asked me this morning, and I forgot to tell you.”

Lila made a show of gracious acceptance. “Well, okay. We’ll do it some other time!”

Claudette waited a moment longer, but Lila didn’t offer to come with. She sighed. “Yeah. Next time.”

Lila gave a little wave with her signature smile, bad mood apparently completely forgotten, and turned away. It was a disconnect that burned in Claudette’s mind, now that she knew the truth. She had always just thought that Lila didn’t like to make a scene, hid her true feelings to spare those around her, or perhaps, was just genuinely that good of a person that she just couldn’t hold on to anger the way others could. But now… she started walking toward the metro, pulling out her phone. The frozen air seared her lungs as she took a deep breath, listening to it ring.

“I think I’m ready,” she said, as soon as he picked up. “But I do have one question.”

“What’s your question?” Robere asked, wariness in his tone.

“How do you deal with the guilt?” Claudette asked, tears stinging her eyes. She blinked them back. “I mean… I know she’s a liar, I know she doesn’t really care, but… she’s my best friend.”

“That’s the thing, though,” Robere said, more gently. “She’s not. And she never has been.”

Claudette closed her eyes. Two tears left freezing tracks on her cheeks. “I thought she was. And... shouldn’t I at least try to redeem her?”

“Do you really think you can?”

Claudette shook her head. “I don’t know. I was hoping… but I’m pretty sure she tried to threaten Marinette again today. I don’t understand why she would do that when all she has to do is just… leave them alone. Just… stop lying about everything, you know? Find some actual,  _ real _ charities to collect for, and quit spreading rumors. As for the fake celebrity friends… who even cares? She’s  _ got _ friends- friends who think she’s a good person. Why can’t she just be the good person we thought she was?”

“Why couldn’t she just step back and let us date last semester?” Robere asked. “Why couldn’t she leave Marinette and Tikki alone? Why did she lie about dating a celebrity, and why is she trying to ruin his reputation now that he has an actual girlfriend who isn’t her?”

Claudette couldn’t speak past the lump in her throat.

“It’s because she wants control,” Robere said, answering his own questions. “At least, that’s what I think. She ruined my reputation because she didn’t want to lose control over you, and she wouldn’t leave Mari and Tikki alone because they gave her more control over all of you. And now Adrien’s made her look like a liar- which she most definitely is- and if there’s anything we’ve learned about Lila, it’s that she hates being called out.”

“I hate that I can’t think of anything to refute that,” Claudette choked out. She swallowed hard and breathed deeply for a few moments. She could do this. Robere had been hinting that if she really wanted to make up for all the bad things she did on Lila’s behalf, that she could be very useful to whatever their plan was, but so far Claudette had resisted that suggestion. But now… maybe if Lila understood, for once, that she was outed as a liar and no one believed her anymore… then, maybe she would change. 

“Alright. Tell me what you want me to do.”

\----

Lila seethed all the way home, first because Marinette had played it smart for once- something she had to grudgingly admit she hadn’t anticipated, and secondly, because she’d been smart enough to have backup and lure Lila into an area where she could use them without alerting Lila to their presence. It was glaringly obvious that audio would condemn Lila to anyone who heard it played. She tried to remember how the conversation had gone, but all that really stuck in her memory was the moment the little blond girl had tackled her, and the awful sinking sensation she felt when the other girls held up their phones as evidence. 

But that wasn’t the only reason Lila was seething. Claudette had brushed her off. Actually brushed her off! They’d made plans, and by all that was holy, Lila should have been at the top of Claudette’s priority list! She’d certainly worked hard enough for that, making the girl her best friend and all. But Lila couldn’t help but compare Claudette’s recent behavior with how she’d acted before the winter break. As uncomfortable as it was to admit, she had to consider that perhaps the blinders had come off. Even if the girl hadn’t reacted the way Lila had expected her to upon learning about Lila’s lies, the truth was that she couldn’t afford to rely on her anymore.

Which, of course, meant that now Lila had  _ no _ allies at school. But that didn’t necessarily mean that Lila was friendless. She still had all the rest of her followers to rely on, and a nice, stinky online smear campaign seemed to be the best strategy for now. She got her phone out and got started, messaging one person after another, inventing lies right and left, but sticking close enough to the truth that anyone who heard a different version, might just consider the source- and what they knew about the source. Lila’s smile turned genuine as she thought how Marinette’s protests would sound to anyone who had been part of Lila’s circle. Sure, her reputation might still go down in flames, but she would make sure Marinette was falling right there beside her if at all possible.

\----

Marinette sighed contentedly, watching her friends interact over their impromptu dinner. Adrien was buying, though she’d begged him not to, so they had decided on a fancier restaurant than their usual. Rose and Juleka were taking the opportunity to be a little sappier with each other than Marinette was used to seeing them, and Kagami kept checking her phone and smiling.

“What’s up with Kagami?” Marinette whispered in Adrien’s ear. He shivered slightly, making Marinette grin, before he turned his head toward her.

“She met someone, and they’ve been texting back and forth. I don’t know many details right now, but he seems like a good guy from what she’s told me. At the very least, he makes her smile.” He smiled at her then, and since their faces were so close it seemed a shame to pass up an opportunity for a kiss. But Marinette kept it short since they were still in public. Later, when he took her home, they could spend a little bit more time.

“I was worried about you today,” he said, when Marinette pulled back again. Marinette sighed again and studied his face, the little worry line between his brows and the slight downturn at the corner of his lips.

“I know,” she said. “I was worried, too. I was afraid that I’d freeze up and not be able to say anything, or fight back if it came down to it.” She looked down and interlaced their fingers. “But I’m glad I did it, because I discovered that I  _ could _ say what I had to say, and I was ready to fight back when she started coming at me. Even though my heart was pounding and I felt like being sick, I… I could do it. So. That’s something.”

“It’s more than something, it’s amazing,” Adrien said, and she looked up to see his eyes shining with pride in her. 

She half-smiled at him in bemusement and pushed herself away, sitting up straighter. “Stop looking at me like that,” she murmured, breaking eye contact.

“Or what?” he asked, mischievously leaning in as she pulled away.

“Or we’ll have to leave early,” she said in a low voice, shooting him a significant glance. He blushed- hard- and sat back up, gulping and stuffing both hands in his pockets as best he could while sitting down. Marinette stifled a giggle, now knowing perfectly well what that meant, and feeling the heat rising in her own cheeks. She was both proud of herself for the tease, and mortified at her own forwardness.

Fortunately, before either of them could die of mutual longing and embarrassment, their food arrived.


	34. Chapter 34

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Lila's friends have an unexpected reaction to her newest lies.  
> Both Lila, and Adrien and Marinette remain ignorant of what's going on behind the scenes.

Claudette got home and sat down at her computer, picking up the flash drive Adrien had given her almost two weeks ago. She held it, considering what Robere had asked her to do. She… didn’t quite trust her own judgement at the moment when it came to dealing with bullies. After all, she’d so recently discovered that she’d  _ been _ the bully, when all the time she thought she was defending  _ against _ a bully. How could she really tell if what he’d asked her to do was right? It was a question she’d been wrestling with since discovering Lila’s true personality. 

And… even if it was the right thing to do, did she have the right to do it? After all that she’d done to Marinette and later to Tikki… could she justify taking action on their behalf? Would they even want her to? Wouldn’t that just make her the biggest hypocrite in the world? After all, the tactics hadn’t changed… much. Robere and the others still wanted to take Lila down. Maybe not physically- and Claudette felt physically ill whenever she thought of what she (and the others, but she had freely participated and even instigated some of it) had done to Marinette- but it was still a take-down. So, did she have the right?

But what else could she do? She knew Lila wasn’t going to ignore the situation, as much as Claudette wished she would. And if Lila roped in all the others into the smear campaign Claudette just knew she was going to use on Adrien and Marinette, then things could get really nasty before everything was sorted out. It was entirely possible that, no matter the ultimate outcome of such a tactic, Adrien and Marinette would have a hard time rebuilding their reputations.

In the end, Claudette convinced herself- for the hundredth time- that she owed it to Marinette to make sure Lila couldn’t harm her any worse than she already had. So she took a deep breath and inserted the flash drive into the side of her laptop, ready to upload the files.

She already had a file-sharing account, and she intended to post a link to the files on everyone’s social media, everyone she knew- which was the same list as the one Lila had, she was sure. Hopefully Claudette’s credit with everyone was still high enough to count for something, and they would actually look at the files instead of rejecting them out of hand. With that in mind, Claudette was careful to organize them so that the least distressing information came first in the queue, leaving the no-punches-pulled proof that Lila’s entire personality was basically fake for the last few files. Hopefully by that point, everyone who had kept reading would be prepared for that facer.

While the files uploaded, Claudette checked her social media. She was expecting to see much the same things as she’d seen during the winter break- chatter and gossip about the friend group, what they were all up to, and how much everyone missed each other now that they weren’t all in the same school anymore. But what she actually saw was definitely not that.

Claudette knew, or thought she had known, Lila well, and it didn’t surprise her that she’d already sent out messages to everyone about Adrien and Marinette. In fact she cringed internally before checking anything, expecting to see the usual vitriol about Marinette and how vile she was for stealing Adrien from Lila. But… that wasn’t what she saw at all.

She had several private messages from the friend group on all her platforms, and most of them ranged from polite questions about whether Lila had really been dating Adrien, to tentative warnings against Lila, to outright accusations of helping Lila get away with her lies. Dumbfounded, she read through them.

On Twitter, Georgio and Felice both said that they’d gotten backstage passes at a Jagged Stone concert and the rocker told them he didn’t know anyone named Lila. Didn’t recognize a picture, either.

She had 169 Facebook notifications- Beatrice had started a Facebook group called “Getting to the bottom of it” and added her and most of their friends. Every new notification was someone talking about a lie that they’d discovered Lila had told. Towards the end most of the messages were either angry or disappointed, or both. 

She scrolled through Instagram, where a lot of people had liked and reposted Adrien’s pictures starting with the debacle about him and Carmen, most speculating when he and Lila would go public, but after that the public speculation started tapering off, and Claudette had several private messages saying that Adrien had messaged them himself about how Lila was lying about dating him, and asking for clarification.

Claudette got up and moved to her bed, staring at her phone in bewilderment. She had expected to have an uphill battle on her hands, trying to convince everyone not to believe Lila’s lies. Instead, she was faced with a situation where she was the last one on the truth-train apparently. At least online… she felt both guilt and shame that she had been avoiding social media since that first Instagram message from Adrien. Looking back, she could see how she didn’t want to face the truth. But if she had logged on, even just to check in with their other friends, maybe it wouldn’t have taken her so long to accept it.

Taking a deep breath, she decided that trying to reply to everyone individually on different platforms would take forever. So she started a group chat instead. 

**User** **_cldtte87_ ** **created the chat** **_The Truth About Lila._ **

**User** **_cldtte87_ ** **added** **_cynthiamorrell, georgiobardani, feliceettienne, bordeauxangler,_ ** **and** **_10 others_ ** **to the chat.**

**_Cynthiamorrell, georgiobardani, feliceettienne, and bordeauxangler_ ** **have joined the chat**

**cldtte87:**

Hey guys, sorry I’ve been awol. Seems I’m not the only one to find out some stuff. 

**Cynthiamorrell:**

Hey1 what’s up? Other than this smack talk about lila

**Georgiobardani:**

Don’t you mena Lie-la?

**bordeuxangler:**

Lol

“Lie-la”

Kudos to her mom

**Feliceettienne:**

Seriously. I can’t believe I fell for some of this stuff. Tinnitus that was cured by going to a rock concert? Pft

**Cynthiamorrell:**

I’m still wondering how we all thought she could be friends with so many celebrities. I mean

**Georgiobardani:**

Yeah it’s weird

**Cynthiamorrell:**

She’s our age. How many of us know even one celebrity?

**_chilihot_ ** **has joined the chat**

**_cheesyontheoutside_ ** **has joined the chat**

**Cldtte87:**

Well… technically, I know at least one, now…

**Bordeauxangler:**

Wait what

**cldtte87:**

Yeah. I… Lila fed me some bull about Marinette stealing Adrien from her over Winter break, but Adrien had actually messaged me about my comment on his Instagram picture. 

But somehow I forgot all about that when he posted those pictures of him and his ladybug, and Lila fed me another lie. 

He’s in my physics class and I asked him to meet me so I could tell him how horrible Marinette is 

but instead he challenged everything I ever knew about Lila and marinette, and 

even gave me a flash drive full of proof that Marinette never bullied Lila at all. 

You can read it  _ here _

**Chilihot:**

…

**Bordeauxangler:**

Ooof

**Feliceettienne:**

Wow

**Cheesyontheoutside:**

I mean

**Georgiobardani:**

That’s…

The next ten replies were all cursing of one variety or another. Claudette pulled them back from their self-flagellations.

**cldtte87:**

Listen guys, here’s the thing. 

I’m pretty sure Lila tried to threaten Marinette again this afternoon, but apparently it didn’t go well 

so that’s why she’s been spamming all of you with her stories about how awful Marinette is again 

I’m pretty sure she’s trying to get another smear campaign going, and turn everyone against her again 

to be brutally frank, we all owe it to Marinette not to let that happen. 

We might be the worst and the most gullible, but now that we know the truth, we don’t have to be anymore.

Claudette watched the feed anxiously, waiting for someone to respond to that challenge. It took five minutes before anyone did.

**Chilihot:**

You’re right

We should do something

**Cheesyontheoutside:**

This is… weird, though

**Georgiobardani:**

Yeha, somehow I dind’t think it through, but youre right. If Lila lied about all this other stuff, she definitely lied about Marinette

**Feliceettienne:**

I… kinda want to kill myself rn

**Cynthiamorrell:**

Me too

**Chilihot:**

We ar ethe worst

**Bordeauxangler:**

Awful

**User** **_chilihot_ ** **has changed the chat name from** **_The Truth About Lila_ ** **to** **_We are the Worst_ **

**Cldtte87:**

Yeah, I get it. Believe me, I’ve been kicking myself for two weeks now. But that’s not going to save Marinette any heartache if Lila gets her feet under her again.

Adrien Agreste has millions of followers and fans

We have to stop her from using them against him and Marinette

Claudette spent until nearly midnight hashing out plans with the rest of her friends. It both baffled and encouraged her that no one was blaming anyone except Lila right now. Maybe in the days to come they would start to turn on each other as the guilt really hit home, but for now they were all united against the one person who had lied and manipulated all of them. 

\----

Lila spent her evening watching mindless television and daydreaming about Marinette’s downfall. She’d spread all her rumors and lies, and now all she had to do was sit back and watch it all blow up in the sly girl’s face. Lila smirked to herself, thinking that her old rival was probably not too worried. She wouldn’t expect Lila to do anything immediately. So she would be forced to play catch-up, to react to things instead of acting on her own. And that meant, even if Lila lost this round, that Marinette’s reputation, and possibly Adrien’s as well, would be irrevocably tarnished.

She’d turned off notifications on all her platforms since she wanted this to get up a head of steam before she began answering questions and further incriminating Marinette and Adrien in their heads. It was probably a good thing that she did, because otherwise she might not have slept nearly so well.

\----

Tikki and Plagg snuggled together on her bed, phones in hand, carefully monitoring the situation through Robere. Though they’d decided to continue online schooling for the rest of the school year, Tikki still wanted to make sure that Marinette was doing alright. She’d been overjoyed to see the romance between her and the model blossom into something sweet. But the news that Lila and Claudette were now at the same school as Marinette again was a much nastier shock.

Fortunately, Adrien appeared to have more than one brain-cell, and when Claudette gave him an opening- obviously planning to poison him against Marinette- he’d taken the opportunity to tell her the truth about Lila instead. And, for a wonder, Claudette had apparently believed him. According to Robere, she’d called him on the evening of the first day of school, terribly upset and asking if the rumors about him had been true or not. Tikki and Plagg knew that Lila had only spread those rumors because it looked like Claudette was falling for him, so it made sense for her to contact him first.

Tikki wasn’t sure she fully trusted Claudette- especially since the girl had yet to apologize for anything she’d done to them. And after what she and the others had done to Marinette, and later to herself, she wasn’t sure Claudette was the best person for the task. But she had to admit that flipping someone so far on the inside of Lila’s group was a major bonus. If it was real, of course. But she supposed they didn’t have much to lose, even if Claudette proved to be playing double agent. 

Strangely, every time they came across someone sharing or reposting or reblogging Lila’s insane lies about Adrien, the name was never one they recognized. Maybe, Tikki mused, Claudette was actually getting through to the rest of Lila’s followers. That still left the millions of other Adrien Agreste fans, though, and some of them were clearly looking for any excuse not to like Adrien’s current girlfriend. Tikki suspected they wouldn’t like  _ any _ girlfriend of Adrien’s if it wasn’t them, but that wouldn’t really help Marinette any.

Right now, they were taking screenshots of everything they came across, using pseudo accounts, since none of Lila’s followers would ever accept a friend or follow request from either of their actual accounts. It was going to be important to establish a time-line, to see how quickly things blew up out of nothing.

\----

Adrien held the car door for Marinette as she got out in front of the bakery. He’d been polite and tried to act normally at dinner, but he’d been waiting for this ever since Marinette had teased him about leaving early. He walked her to the side door and made sure the door from the bakery to the stairwell was shut before backing her up against the wall. He was a little hesitant- this was one of his fantasies, but if Marinette didn’t seem into it, he had every intention of backing off.

Luckily, she immediately wrapped her arms around his neck, so he felt it was okay to proceed. Unfortunately, kissing Marinette against a wall wasn’t quite the romantic fantasy he’d envisioned. The height difference between them was too great, and having her flat against the wall didn’t allow her to tilt her head back to meet him halfway. It also made it too difficult to wrap his arms around her the way he wanted to, and he couldn’t hold her against him and crouch down to reach her mouth at the same time. After a few moments of trying to make it work, they broke apart, Marinette giggling and Adrien a little embarrassed. 

Fortunately, Marinette was still in the mood for kissing, so after checking the bakery, they just went upstairs to her living room. Their excuse was to say hello to her parents and let them know Marinette was home, but the real reason was to make sure they were both still down there and wouldn’t be back up in the apartment for a little while. Not that Tom and Sabine weren’t supportive of their relationship, but Adrien did not want them to walk in on them if things got a little… heated. And he wasn’t quite comfortable with Marinette taking him to her room just yet.

They started a movie, but it didn’t take long for them to pick up where they’d left off, the couch being a much more comfortable spot to make out. And when Marinette started running her fingers through his hair, Adrien found out all over again just how much of a goner he was. There was no doubt about it- he had the best girlfriend in the world.

\----

Claudette was honestly a little scared to go to school the next day. She had no idea if Lila had been paying attention, but she and the others had spent half the night trying to shut down all the rumors they came across. 

When Lila got out of her car and greeted her pleasantly, Claudette didn’t know what to think. Either she hadn’t been paying attention and thought things were going well, or… or she was planning some kind of vicious revenge on her. Claudette found out, that very long day, just how effective a torment it could be, being forced to wait for the other shoe to drop.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> It seems every time I include some kind of social media formatting, it changes. Sorry for that. I'm basically winging it whenever I include it, and going with what I've seen in other fics. I hope it's not too distracting or difficult to read.
> 
> EDIT: That thing with pushing your partner up against a wall for a make-out session really only works if your partner is close to the same height as you. Mine is about a foot taller than me, and I assure you- it does not work. And for the shorter person to try and wrap their legs around the other doesn't work very well either- or at least, it never has for us. It's just uncomfortable all around. This has been your PSA on PDA. Good night.


	35. Chapter 35

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Lila uses deception. It is not effective. 
> 
> Also, she lets herself be pushed into a trap.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> IT BEGINS...

Nathanael walked back into the art room after school, hoping he’d accidentally left his markers there. He’d missed them right after lunch, and he was trying to meet a deadline for the comic. Plus they were new, so writing them off made his artistic soul squirm. He couldn’t afford to replace them just now, and using cheaper ones… 

He was surprised to see anyone else there- unless someone was trying to finish a project and had permission to stay late, the teacher preferred for students to do their work either in class or at home. The girl looked startled to see him, too, but he merely smiled at her and went to the table he shared with Marinette to look for his bag. The thought of Marinette made him take another look at the brunette poking around the cubbies. She looked vaguely familiar, and while so far Nathanael had had no occasion to offer his support, he’d been shown a few pictures of Lila and Claudette. And this girl… looked remarkably like Lila, now that he took a second look.

Just as Nathanael was about to say something, he spotted his marker bag, kicked halfway under the desk behind his, and he bent to pick it up. When he straightened, he saw the girl sliding a sketchbook back into a slot in the cubbies. Nathanael frowned.

“Can I help you find something?” he asked, more than a little suspicious now. 

The girl whirled and stared at him with a wide smile. “Oh! Well… um, maybe?” She took a few steps toward him, glancing up from under her lashes, which made Nathanael raise an eyebrow.

“See, I, uh, commissioned something from Marinette Dupain-Cheng, and she said she was going to give it to me today, but… we kept missing each other, and I really need it for something tonight. So, could you tell me which one is her sketchbook? That way, I can just text her that I got it, and it’ll be fine!”

Now all of Nathanael’s alarm bells were ringing. He knew how much Marinette valued her sketchbooks, and how she still felt very protective of them. She’d never leave one of them here, and after hearing what had happened to some of her sketchbooks in the past, Nathanael couldn’t blame her.

“Marinette never leaves her sketchbooks here,” he said. “She takes them with her everywhere, so you’ll just have to try and contact her again. Although… I would be very surprised at her if she failed to deliver something on time. She probably already mailed it to you and it’s waiting for you at home.”

The girl’s smile faltered, and Nathanael could see the gears turning in her head.

“Well,” she said, then hesitated. “Actually… I’m going to be honest with you. Marinette…” she hung her head, “she’s been stealing from me.”

Both of Nathanael’s eyebrows rose at that blatant lie. He crossed his arms, wishing he could pull his phone out without seeming suspicious. Even though he and Marinette were friends, their schedules didn’t match up enough for him to act as one of her escorts, but Max had given him the link for the special audio recording app anyway.

The girl bit her lip and glanced up at him again, probably to gauge his reaction.

“It’s… well, it’s been going on for some time,” she continued, still trying to sound as if she was scared. “Maybe you’ll say I should have been braver, but… anyway, she’s been coming to my house and threatening me to design things for her, and then,” she choked a sob, “then she would go home and copy it and take credit for all my hard work! I… I just wanted it to stop! I thought-”

“Yeah, you’re going to have to do better than that,” Nathanael said, cutting her off. “And if you don’t leave this room right now, I’m going to report you to the teacher and then to the principal. It’s clear to me, as it will be to them, that you want Marinette’s sketchbook for something and you don’t have permission from her, which doesn’t surprise me in the least, since she can barely bring herself to let her  _ teacher _ look through it, much less anyone else. And since that’s the case, it means you intended to either steal it, or something from inside it, and well… you understand why that’s a problem.”

“You don’t understand!” the girl wailed, behind screening fingers. Nathanael was pretty sure she wasn’t actually crying, because he’d tried listening to genuinely crying girls before and they were nearly always almost impossible to understand. “She doesn’t want anyone seeing her sketchbooks because she can’t draw at all, herself! She always just copies what I do, and-”

“Stop it.” Now Nathanael was getting angry. “Marinette wouldn’t be in the top five of our class if she couldn’t draw, and you’re currently talking to someone who sat next to her all last semester and  _ watched _ what she could do. You’ll never convince me Marinette has been stealing all her ideas from you. First of all, that’s not the kind of person she is, and secondly, she doesn’t  _ have _ to steal ideas from anyone because she’s got plenty of her own!”

Now he did pull his phone out. The girl dropped her hands and though she tried to cover it, he caught a brief flash of irritation before she masked it.

“What are you doing?”

“Calling the office. I’m sure they’ll be happy to send someone down here when I tell them there’s another student trying to steal or ruin my classmate’s hard work.”

At that her expression finally cracked all the way and she glared at him.

“If you do that I will make your life so miserable…” she began.

“Not likely,” Nathanael snapped back. “You couldn’t even come up with a lie I’d believe, and a lot more people are going to believe me than you. So go ahead, say whatever you want to whoever you want. But anyone who knows both me and Marinette will know you’re lying.”

The girl stood there a moment, practically vibrating with anger. Nathanael raised his phone to his ear, and at that, she stalked past him, only pausing at the door to fling one more threat at him.

“You might think you’re safe, but you’re not. If I’d had just a little more warning, I could have convinced even you that Marinette stole all her ideas from me. And I’ll prove it, too, just you wait.”

Nathanael snorted. He hadn’t actually called the office, since he knew that only a few low-level secretaries stayed until all the students had left, but had instead activated the recording app. He wasn’t sure how much of that threat it picked up, but at least there would be something to work with.

The girl disappeared through the door, and Nathanael stopped the recording app. Then he texted the group chat.

**[Illustrator]** I caught someone in the art room just now. Pretty sure it was Lila. Looked like her, anyway. She was looking for Marinette’s sketchbook- tried to claim she commissioned something she needed by tonight.

I called her on it, and she tried to convince me that marinette’s been stealing her design ideas for a long time and passing them off as hers. Like I’d believe that when I’ve been sitting next to Marinette for the last half-year.

Just be careful, guys. I don’t think Lila’s going to give up easily.

\----

“So how are your submissions going, Marinette?” Mylene asked at lunch a few days after the confrontation in the bathroom. They’d all heard about it by now, and everyone had been on edge, waiting for Lila to make her move. Strangely, though, Lila had all but disappeared from Marinette’s orbit. Claudette was also behaving strangely. Sometimes Marinette would look up and see Claudette staring at her, only for Claudette to immediately look away. Less than a year ago, that would have meant that Marinette should watch out for an attack, but… she wasn’t getting that kind of vibe from her now.

In fact, nothing was going the way she’d expected it to. Sure, there were some rumors circling on social media about the supposed loved triangle between Lila, her, and Adrien, but not nearly as many as they had expected, and none of the people who used to hang around Lila seemed to be participating. And when they were, more often than not they were telling people to do some research. It was definitely the last thing Marinette had ever expected out of any of them. They seemed to have done a complete one-eighty in attitude from the last time she’d interacted with any of them.

So, while she didn’t quite know what to think, she was choosing to look on the bright side and focusing on her entries for two design contests due at the end of April. It was only the beginning of February, but it was never too early to start.

Now, Marinette smiled and opened her portfolio, silently marvelling at how she only felt the smallest twinge of anxiety about that now. At least, in this group of people. Pretty much the only people she now trusted with her sketchbooks were her actual art teachers and the people in her friend group. Everyone else was still suspect. Still, it was progress.

The first contest had a prompt which challenged potential designers to come up with three summer accessories that embodied the idea of fruition. Marinette was honestly struggling with that one, because it was such a difficult concept to embody in a physical object. 

The second contest was more practical (and struck Marinette as the easier, if she was being honest)- it called for three designs which could fulfill at least two different functions, focusing on making functionality stylish as well as useful.

She opened her sketchbook to a page where she had played around with an idea for a chunky necklace with hollow pieces that could hide small, useful objects. Since her focus was on fashion design, naturally she had thought of things like needles and thread for emergency clothing repairs, and a tiny screwdriver and pliers, and several tiny pins and screws for jewelry repair. Beyond that, though, Marinette was lost as to what to include, so she was eager to hear their suggestions.

Soon they were all putting in their own ideas for how to make something that seemed to have only a single purpose multi-functional. Nino and Max in particular had very surprising and useful suggestions.

They managed to attract quite a little crowd before long, and Marinette didn’t notice that it had grown that big until a voice she knew all too well sent ice down her spine.

“Marinette… how could you?” Lila sobbed brokenly. “First you steal my boyfriend and now… now you steal my designs as well?”

Everyone grew very quiet, though the sudden tension around her let Marinette know that her friends were ready and willing to spring to her defense. Marinette stood and turned to face her accuser. Claudette was there, too, but there was a distance between the two girls Marinette hadn’t noticed before.

“I’ve never stolen anything from you Lila, and you know it,” she said, firmly.

“Yes you have! All the time! You tried to take credit for that jumpsuit I made, remember?”

Marinette flushed, suddenly struck by the painful memories of that day all over again.

“Marinette didn’t steal these designs from you,” someone spoke up from the crowd. Marinette and Lila both turned their heads to see who had said it. Nathanael’s bright red hair set him apart. He was looking passively at Lila. “I know Marinette’s style and it hasn’t changed. I’ve seen her drawings and I’ve seen her actively drawing. Everything in her sketchbooks is one hundred percent Marinette.”

“She… she took  _ my _ drawings and re-drew them! That’s all!” Lila insisted, her expression morphing from sad to furious. “That’s all she can do- copy something someone else has come up with. She’s been stealing from me for a long time!”

Nathaneal raised an eyebrow. He pulled his bookbag open and took out a sketchbook. He opened it and tore out a fresh page. He then handed the page and a newly sharpened pencil to Lila. Or tried to, at least. She just looked at him dumbly, glancing from him to the page and pencil and back again. Finally Nathanael sighed.

“Prove it,” he said, waving the page and pencil at her. “If she stole your designs, she shouldn’t be able to come up with anything on her own, right? So let’s have a little contest, right here, right now.”

Shuffling behind her made Marinette turn her amazed gaze from Nathanael and Lila to the long table behind her. Ivan and Nino had already cleared spaces at either end of the table of food and belongings, making a place for both of them to sit and draw. Marinette turned back and smiled happily at Lila.

“That sounds like a very fair idea, Nathanael,” she said. “We have a half-hour of lunch left- that’s plenty of time to prove who is a designer and who is a thief, don’t you think Lila?”

She honestly didn’t expect Lila to take her up on it. After all, Marinette knew Lila had never designed anything in her life, and was dubious on her drawing skills. Even now, she could see Lila calculating how much her credit would suffer if she refused, and weighing that against how much it would suffer if she came out the loser. It was looking like Lila would refuse, probably accusing them all of ganging up against her, and that she couldn’t possibly come up with a decent design in the time provided. Lila even got as far as opening her mouth, but then Claudette unexpectedly changed the game on her.

“Why not, Lila? You’ve always said you liked to dabble in design. I mean, sure, there’s not a lot of time, but you’ll each have the same amount, so it’s not like it’s unfair.”

Lila gaped at her friend, clearly shocked and angered. Then she looked around the circle of people, both friends of Marinette and random students, and took a deep breath, setting her mouth into a hard line.

“Fine!” she said, snatching the paper and pencil from Nathanael. The students parted enough for her to make her way to one end of the table. Marinette went to the other. Mylene, Rose, and Juleka cleared the rest of the trays away, and everyone else who was still sitting there stood up. Adrien hovered protectively behind her, but Marinette’s brain was already whirling with ideas and possibilities. 

Nathanael took out his phone and pulled up a timer. “Ok, ladies and gentlemen, designers and,” he glanced at Lila, “pretenders, here are the rules. To avoid anyone accusing me of conspiracy, I need a design suggestion from the crowd. Okay, first I need an item of clothing.”

After several suggestions, Nathanael chose “men’s shirt.” Marinette noted that he picked a suggestion by someone she didn’t recognize.

“Now, I need a theme- something to make the shirt stand out.”

Again, Nathanael chose “dogs” from the crowd. And again, that suggestion came from someone Marinette didn’t know. She hid a smile, recognizing Nathanael’s effort to make everything as fair as possible.

“Alright then,” he said, turning back to them. “You ladies have 25 minutes to complete at least the first draft of a design for a men’s shirt with a theme of dogs.” He tapped his phone screen and put the phone in the middle of the table where everyone could see the time counting down.

Marinette had torn a fresh page out of her own sketchbook, and immediately got to work. She thought of how soft and silky a dog’s coat was and decided to make the shirt out of brushed cotton to simulate suede but be more breathable. She quickly sketched out the rough shape of a long sleeved shirt, deciding against buttons and going for a diagonal zipper starting from the left hip up to the collar, with a silver circular coin-sized pull, reminiscent of a dog tag. She sketched in a mandarin collar with a buckle, and suddenly decided to encourage the eastern inspiration by adding false closures either side of the zipper all the way down, replacing the usual knot with an embroidered paw print. She made the sleeves tight and formfitting with synth-leather cuffs. She added synth-leather piping around the base of the collar, and edging the zipper and glanced at the time. Less than a minute. She frowned at her creation. She wished she had more time to work on it, but instead of nit-picking, she quickly noted her choices for fabric and colors along the side, finishing just before the phone chirped.

Marinette put her pencil down and felt an encouraging squeeze on her shoulder. She looked up to see Adrien beaming down on her and smiled back. Nathanael took her page and put in the center of the table, putting his phone back in his pocket. Beside Marinette’s page, he put Lila’s and the differences between them were… well, apparent. 

Marinette didn’t like to brag, but she’d been working on clothing designs for many years and it showed. Her drawing looked almost like something found on a pattern packet, though less polished because of the time constraints. Lila’s drawing… well, it was terrible. 

She’d gone for a simple t-shirt, but the edges were wobbly and ill-defined. In the middle of the chest she’d tried to come up with a graphic, but again, it was poorly executed. There was what was supposed to be a large dog head in the middle, with the tongue hanging out, with alternating silhouettes of dogs walking in three lines across the background, which were suggested by more wobbly outlines in which you could vaguely determine heads and tails. She had not made any notes on color or fabric choice. Despite everything, Marinette was impressed at Lila’s drawing ability. She hadn’t expected even that much from her.

Nathanael looked at both designs with a neutral expression before looking around the crowd, most of which had stuck around, watching both girls work. “Ok, show of hands,” he said. “Which of these more clearly shows the mind of an aspiring fashion designer?” He held up each drawing in turn, and the people who liked it raised their hands. Marinette was the clear winner.

Lila split an infuriated glare between her and Nathanael. “This… this was clearly a set up!” she sputtered. “You… you and  _ him _ ,” she spat the word, shooting Nathanael a poisonous glance. “You knew I was tired of letting you steal from me, and were just waiting for me to accuse you so you could show me up! You clearly had this all worked out in advance and… and had time to practice! Twenty-five minutes for a quality design? Ha! It’s laughable!”

Marinette just raised her eyebrows at her. Nathanael kept his place between the two girls. “Any artist will always need more practice, but Marinette clearly showed both her artistic and design skills in the time allotted without much apparent difficulty. While your design would probably be fine for a t-shirt, your execution is lacking, and you had nothing to offer in terms of possible colors or fabric choice. Based on this exercise, Marinette has no need to steal your designs because she has plenty of ideas of her own- and better execution. As for your accusation that we set this up between us… you’re the one who started all this. There’s no way we could possibly have known that you would try to accuse Marinette of theft and plagiarism, much less that you would choose today to do so. And besides, I only took the suggestions from random people in the crowd- not any of our friends. You don’t have a leg to stand on, as far as that goes.”

Lila uttered an enraged scream and turned on Claudette. "And you!" she cried. "Why would you do this to me?"

Claudette looked down at the floor, and when she spoke it was quietly. "I only told you to participate because I thought you could draw better than that. I thought, since you've often said how good you are, that it would be no contest." She looked up at Lila, and Marinette could see the pain in her eyes. "I guess I was wrong about you."

For a moment Lila looked like she'd been slapped in the face. Marinette was a little worried in case she attacked Claudette, but then someone stepped out of the general crowd. It was a teacher. Specifically, Marinette and Nathanael’s drawing teacher.

“Miss Rossi, you’ve made some serious accusations, and I think it’s time we involved the principal and your mother. Please come with me, and I’m sure we can get to the bottom of this.”

Lila paled and gulped, but then she shot a triumphant look at Marinette, before trying to look sad again. “Yes, please,” she said to the teacher, beginning to fake sob. “It just hurts so much that she would do this to me!”

The teacher, unbeknownst to Lila, lifted an eyebrow and put a hand on her shoulder to guide her out of the cafeteria.

Marinette watched them go with nothing more than a little smile on her face. Adrien placed a hand on her shoulder.

“You ok?” he asked quietly.

Marinette nodded. “I’m fine. That’s one of my art teachers. Lila won’t be able to lie her way out of this one. Besides, it’s kind of a relief to actually  _ show _ everyone that she’s lying through her teeth.” She smiled warmly at Nathanael. “Thanks, Nath,” she said. “That was brilliant.”

“Yeah, dude, that was awesome,” Nino said, soon followed by the praise of all the rest of Marinette’s friends. Nathanael blushed almost as red as his hair, but smiled back, clearing his throat uncomfortably. 

“Well, I did fib a little there at the end. I figured she would try something like this after I caught her in the art room, so…” he trailed off. “I, um, I also sent someone to get the teacher the minute she accused you of stealing her designs.”

Marinette surprised both of them by hugging him tightly. “Thank you,” she whispered in his ear before pulling away. “I owe you and Marc something really nice,” she said, firmly. “Whenever you think of something, just let me know, and I’ll make it for you, ok?”

“Um, okay, but you don’t have to do that,” Nathanael said, blush beginning to fade. “B-but I’ll ask Marc.”

“You do that,” Marinette said, and then turned her smile on the whole group. The others- the ones who didn’t know Marinette personally, had already drifted away- but her friends were still there. “I’m so, so happy and thankful for you guys,” she said. “I don’t know what I’d do without you.”

That prompted another group hug, and then the bell rang and they all had to get back to classes. But Marinette felt lighter of heart than she had in a long time.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I did tell you it was only beginning. ;)
> 
> Also, I hope the shirt Marinette designed doesn't strike anyone as an awful design. I am not a designer by any means, I just tried to do the best I could.


	36. Chapter 36

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Lila tries to explain herself.

Lila tried to tell herself she wasn’t nervous. This was simple! And would probably go down just like every other time she’d been called on to explain what was going on between her and Marinette. They had a history, after all. And though her followers had inexplicably ignored her messages about Marinette stealing Adrien from her, she was sure they would back her up about Marinette’s hatred for her. It was common knowledge, after all. Marinette had never even denied it.

The fact that they’d called her mother meant very little. Lila’s mom knew she and Marinette didn’t get along, and Lila had always insinuated that this was because Marinette was jealous. So that was fine. 

The teacher who had brought Lila to the office in the first place came back out of the principal’s inner office and beckoned to her. Lila maintained her wounded expression, trying to look as vulnerable as she could, and went in.

“Miss Rossi,” the principal said, after Lila sat down in a chair in front of her desk. “I understand you’ve accused another student of theft and forgery?”

“Y-yes, Ms. Berger,” Lila stammered, trying to coax some tears out of her unwilling eyes.

“Very well. We will need you to fill out an official complaint before you leave today. We will be investigating of course, but can you offer us any proof right now that supports your claim?”

Lila blinked, not quite sure how to proceed in this situation. Though Ms. Berger’s tone had been gentle, there was an air of no-nonsense practicality about what she’d said. At her former lycee, the administrators had always jumped straight to comforting and reassurances when Lila had been called in to discuss a “problem.” If any of them had thought to actually investigate Lila’s claims, no one had ever come to the correct conclusions. However, she had the distinct feeling this would not be the case here and now.

She thought fast. “W-well, no. I’m afraid I don’t. I wish I did, but Marinette is too smart to leave evidence,” she said, soft and hesitantly.

“I see,” Ms. Berger said. “Well, as I said, we will be investigating. There is a place on the complaint form for you to name any witnesses you can recall who can corroborate your claims. Please do list anyone you can remember so we can contact them. I will arrange a meeting to further discuss this in a few days, and the office will let you know when to be here for it.” The principal smiled at her. “Now, I’ve reviewed your schedule, and you don’t share any classes with Miss Dupain-Cheng, so I’m assuming you’ll be alright to return to regular classes, secure in the knowledge that we don’t let anyone fall through the cracks here.”

Lila blinked again, and smiled back hesitantly. She’d much rather have had the principal send her home for the day. Returning to class was so anticlimactic. 

“Um, did you call my mom?” she asked, standing up. 

“Yes,” Ms. Berger said, beginning to shuffle some things on her desk. “While she was naturally concerned about the incident, she was satisfied by my assurance that we would get to the bottom of this as quickly as possible. She also agreed to make some room in her schedule so she can attend the meeting.”

Lila smiled a brittle smile. “Ok. Thank you,” she said. “I’m… still a little shaken up. Would it be alright if I went home for the rest of the day?”

“Don’t you think that a return to normal day-to-day activities would help to settle you more than going home where you won’t have anything to distract you from what happened?” The principal asked, raising her eyebrows.

“Well,” Lila said, looking down. “I… I just don’t want to see Marinette in the halls right now.”

The principal looked to the teacher standing behind Lila, and Lila suppressed a flush. She could read the skepticism in the principal’s face clear enough.

“Actually,” she said, hurriedly, before the teacher could respond to the principal’s look. “I’m sure you’re right! I’ll just try to avoid her as much as I can,” she finished. A thought came to mind- if she found herself in deep water at that meeting, she could always claim that the school hadn’t done enough to ensure her mental health- that they’d pushed her into staying at school when she’d wanted to go home. Perhaps that would cast a bad light on the whole investigation and bring their motivations into question.

“If you’re sure,” Ms. Berger said, in the tone that meant she doubted it.

“Of course,” Lila said, smiling a little more naturally. “I don’t want to make a fuss.”

Ms. Berger’s eyebrow twitched, but she said nothing. Lila hesitated another moment before turning and leaving, breathing a sigh of relief once she was out of the office. One of the secretaries had given her a form to fill out, telling her to return it by the end of the day. Lila tried to convince herself that everything had gone well, and that she was that much closer to landing Marinette in just as much trouble as she’d always managed before. But with that principal… she hadn’t been able to influence her at all! How would the investigation go if the people in charge weren’t already disposed toward the right outcome?

Thoughts of that plagued her all day, though she took some vindictive pleasure in changing her seat in every class she shared with Claudette. She wasn’t sure Claudette deserved being completely cast out just yet, but she certainly needed a little punishment for pushing her into that stupid competition. What a time to remember Lila’s boasts about her drawing and designing skills! She’d made her look like a fool, and that was something Lila wasn’t going to forget, or forgive any time soon. She noted that Claudette looked suitably sad and forlorn all the rest of the day, so she knew it was working. No doubt she would come crawling back with an apology tomorrow, and then Lila could be hurt-but-forgiving, and Claudette would be so grateful that she would forget all about Lila’s humiliating performance.

\----

Marinette wasn’t surprised when she was called to the principal’s office later that day. She’d never had a good experience with anyone checking into Lila’s lies, so despite the school’s stated policy on bullying, she had very low hopes as she walked in. Even after Ms. Berger had encouraged her last semester to take a friend to the bathroom with her to avoid more panic attacks- a policy Marinette still took advantage of, especially since Lila and Claudette’s return to her school- she wasn’t sure that Lila hadn’t been able to cloud the issue and turn things to her favor. She’d always been able to do that before, after all. Fortunately, she thought squaring her shoulders, this time I have irrefutable proof.

“Miss Dupain-Cheng,” the principal said, greeting her. “I’m sure you’re aware that another student has lodged a complaint against you.”

Marinette nodded cautiously.

“Now, we want you to have an equal voice in the matter, so I would like you to take this form and fill it out, stating your version of events to the best of your recollection. If there are any others you can think of who also saw what happened, please include their names. I will schedule a meeting with everyone involved in a few days time so we can discuss what happened and come to some decision on how to move forward. I’ve also contacted your parents and informed them of the complaint, and they agreed to come here on that day to support you.”

Marinette took the form with a smile. “Thank you,” she said. “This is… a lot more fair than I was expecting.”

Ms. Berger smiled a tired smile. “According to your records, you attended the lycee that was shut down before transferring here, correct?”

Marinette nodded cautiously. The principal’s smile tightened a bit.

“Well, here we strive to get to the bottom of a matter before passing judgement. It can sometimes be hard on the victims of a situation to have to wait, but we do try to make things as fair as possible. In the event that you and Miss Rossi shared any classes, I would have done my best to stagger your schedules so that you would not be forced to interact until after the matter was resolved.”

Marinette smiled again. “That sounds very fair,” she said again. “I’ll have this back by the end of the day.” She got up to leave, thinking that even if it was just this one incident that got resolved, it would be a foot in the door to getting everything addressed. Everyone agreed that Lila had dug herself in deep enough and it was time to do something about it.

“Oh, and incidentally, Miss Dupain-Cheng, if  _ you _ have any complaints to lodge, the secretary can give you more forms at the front desk,” Ms. Berger said as Marinette reached the door. Marinette turned to look at her, startled. Ms. Berger gave her a look she couldn’t quite interpret, but she simply nodded and walked out. A small smile trembled on her lips as she asked the secretary for more complaint forms.

The forms, when she looked at them, all had blank spaces where she could write in her understanding of what the complaint was, her own version of events, and list any witnesses she could think of to back up her story. There was even a question on if she knew whether or not someone had managed to record the event, and if so, who that person was.

For the first time in her life, Marinette got a measure of satisfaction in the tedious act of filling out forms.

\----

A few days later Lila went to the office after school instead of going home. She knew Claudette would also be there, but she walked there alone. Surprisingly, Claudette had not apologized for her part in humiliating Lila, so Lila hadn’t talked to her since. It was a strange thing, not to have anyone she could talk to. She’d tried playing up her vulnerability and waif-ishness, but though some of the other students listened politely, she could tell they weren’t enthralled like her followers always had been. It was disgruntling, to say the least. 

And on top of her failure to gather more supporters to her cause, she’d been informed that Marinette and Adrien had each lodged complaints against  _ her! _ She’d been given forms and an idea of what each complaint was, and… well. Considering that she knew Marinette had at least one recording of her threatening her...

Lila knew she would have been much better off if she hadn’t been forced to attack Marinette again. If only Claudette had gone to a different school! This could all have been avoided! Although… if she was honest, she would have to admit that attempting to derail Marinette’s new life would have been a major temptation, no matter what Lila’s own circumstances. But Claudette’s presence meant that Lila had had to stick to one role and didn’t have much room for new tactics, subtlety, or changing up her story. One more thing to hold against her.

When she got to the office, Lila was confronted not only by Marinette, but also two older people who must be her parents, Adrien, and several other students whom she vaguely recognized, but didn’t know the names of. In particular, she recognized the short blonde spit-fire who’d attacked her in the bathroom and suppressed a shudder. She did her best to keep her composure, but kept hold of the feeling, in case she needed to use it to gain sympathy later. 

Lila stood just inside the door, keeping away from the others, and wondering where all the people she had listed as “witnesses”- which she chose to interpret as “willing to back me up”- were. This meeting was taking place after school, so surely they would come? 

The principal’s door opened, and Ms. Berger walked out, looking around and counting heads. Lila’s mother walked into the office shortly after, and with a nod, the principal addressed them all.

“Thank you for coming today. Why don’t we take this down the hall to the conference room? I think there are too many here for us to all fit comfortably in my office.”

So there was another delay as they all filed out of the office and followed the principal down the hall. Lila surreptitiously wiped her hands on her designer jeans as she walked into the room behind her mother. She wasn’t nervous, of course not- but she  _ was _ angry. Where were all her so-called friends? They should be here! Hadn’t she pandered to their every expectation these last few years? They’d all heard everything they wanted to hear from her, and she deserved their support right now!

Ms. Berger quickly took control of the meeting once everyone was inside, directing Marinette, Adrien, and the others to sit on one side of the long table, and Lila and her mother to sit on the other side. Lila did not look at all the empty chairs next to her. After a few moments of paper shuffling, the door to the conference room opened again and Claudette came in, saying a quiet hello, and sitting down on Lila’s side of the table, but keeping a chair in between them.

Lila relaxed slightly. Perhaps the others were just running late. Or, perhaps the principal had contacted them, and they had given statements over the phone instead of coming in person. That could be- it might have been an option, anyway. Lila decided not to worry about it until it became pertinent.

“Alright,” Ms. Berger said, “I think we’re ready to begin. As you all know, the reason for this meeting is that Miss Rossi had accused Miss Dupain-Cheng of coercing drawings and art from her for her own use, and that Miss Dupain-Cheng then passed that art off as her own. Since that incident, several other complaints have been filed, this time against Miss Rossi on behalf of Miss Dupain-Cheng, and Mr. Agreste. Our staff has gathered statements and evidence pertaining to this, but it’s our policy to let the students involved present their sides as best they can. We feel that this is good training for their future, whether they decide to go into a confrontational field like law or not. It helps them to think logically about their problems, and learn how to handle conflict and debate without losing their tempers. Since Miss Rossi is a newcomer to our school, I feel it is only courteous to allow her to present her case first. I must now ask everyone else to keep quiet unless you are asked a direct question. This is a forum where no one will be drowned out by accusation, and everyone will have a chance to speak, however, I must also ask that everyone confine their statements and evidence to things which actually happened here on school grounds. Miss Rossi, are you ready?”

Lila stood, though no one had prompted her to, and tried to look small and meek as she quietly answered, “Yes, madame.”

She took a calculated shuddering breath and began, rapidly revising what she had been about to say now that she knew they didn’t want to hear about the history between her and Marinette. In a way, that made it easier for her. Claudette and her mother wouldn’t expect her to bring up old grudges now, so her story became a lot simpler. However, she did need to at least establish that she and Marinette had never gotten along.

“Is it alright if I begin with a little of the history between us, madame? It’s relevant to what we’re doing right now.”

Ms. Berger nodded, and Lila continued.

“Marinette and I have gone to the same school for several years now, and she’s… well, she’s always hated me. That might be why she decided to try and intimidate me into coming up with design ideas for her. I’m not an aspiring fashion designer like she is, but I do have the occasional good idea, and… well, I didn’t know why exactly, but Marinette has been forcing me to come up with ideas for her since before winter break this year. I didn’t know what she was doing with those ideas until I found myself once again going to school with her and saw that she was passing my work off as her own.” She glanced around the table, meeting only neutral expressions from the principal and the same teacher who had taken her to the office that other day, and varied angry expressions from everyone on Marinette’s side. Her parents- her father, in particular- seemed on the verge of explosions of wrath. 

“I’m only thankful that we haven’t shared any classes this semester, since I’m sure I wouldn’t be able to concentrate with her in the same room. I’m… not very brave. But,” Lila allowed herself to tear up a little. “When I saw her in the cafeteria the other day, and she was actively asking for ideas from all the rest of her friends- for a design competition, no less!- I just knew she was going to take all the credit for herself again, and probably not even thank them for their input. And that… that’s just wrong. So, I spoke up. Only then- I don’t know how they knew, but Marinette and some other boy accused me of lying, and the boy said that a drawing competition between us would be just the thing to settle the matter. But he didn’t understand! It wasn’t my drawings that she was passing off as her own, it was the ideas behind the drawings. I admit, I don’t draw very well, but like I said, I’m not planning to make a career of fashion design. I just… I’m tired of having my ideas stolen, and I don’t want to see anyone else in the same boat, either. I know fashion design is a cut-throat business at times, but we’re both so young…” she waved a hand weakly. “Anyway, I just wanted her to stop stealing from other people. It’s bad enough she stole my boyfriend- that’s one thing, and I understand that it doesn’t really have anything to do with this, and he obviously didn’t care for me that much anyway, if… but stealing ideas is something no one should put up with.” 

Lila finished speaking and sat back down, looking at the woodgrain of the table instead of meeting anyone’s eyes. Her tears had already dried up, but she made sure her expression was suitably saddened.

“Thank you, Miss Rossi,” Ms. Berger said. “I see that you have a friend here as well as your mother. Is there anything pertinent you want to ask her? I believe she was there as well.”

Lila looked up at the principal, and then glanced sideways at Claudette. Claudette, however, wasn’t looking at her, and seemed to be sinking slowly into her own chair, as if trying to avoid calling attention to herself. Lila narrowed her eyes just a little and decided not to ask her ‘best friend’ anything. After all, she hadn’t exactly been eager to participate in things lately, had she?

“No, madame,” Lila said, looking back down.

“Very well, does anyone on the other side have questions for Lila or,” Ms. Berger looked down at one of the sheets in front of her, “Claudette?”

Sabine Cheng raised her hand in answer to the question. “Yes, Ms. Berger, I do have some questions.”

“And are your questions regarding what we are discussing right now?” the principal asked, perhaps as a way to remind her that personal attacks would not be tolerated.

“Indeed they are.”

“Alright then.”

Sabine stood, just as Lila had before, and turned a smoldering gaze on Lila. “I’m very interested in your claim that my daughter has been stealing ideas from you, Miss Rossi,” Sabine said in a clipped voice. “What I can’t understand is exactly when she might have been doing so, because until recently, she had no friends, and came straight home from school. And that’s beside the fact that I know from experience just how easily ideas come to Marinette, because she has ruined many a pastry we might have sold if she had not become distracted by a sudden inspiration. You need to explain exactly how, where, and when you say my daughter forced you to give her design ideas, because I doubt she ever did such a thing.”

Sabine sat down again, glaring at Lila. Lila let herself cringe a little. It would look good for everyone else. Now that she was actually in the thick of it, she decided it was a good thing she had so few people on her side of the table. It made her look like an underdog- someone who was being picked on by everyone else.

“Mrs. Dupain-Cheng,” she began.

“Mrs.  _ Cheng _ , please,” the older woman bit out. Lila quailed a little more, but had to fight not to roll her eyes at the correction. Instead, she said, “Excuse me, Mrs. Cheng. Most of what she did was actually over the phone,” she noted a gleam of triumph in the woman’s eye and added, “and email. And it hasn’t been going on very long. If I had to guess I would say that she was probably under stress from her new relationship and wanted to impress someone,” Lila said. “I can understand that- Adrien is… or was… such a good person, and of course he is very handsome. And with his father being  _ Gabriel Agreste, _ I can see why Marinette might be nervous about her designs.”

Lila mentally patted herself on the back for those little barbs, noting that now  _ everyone _ on that side of the table was glaring daggers at her. Well, everyone except Marinette. She just looked tired. Well, Lila wasn’t going to argue with that. Tired people didn’t fight back very well. But for the rest, if she could provoke them into losing their tempers, that would hurt their case and help hers.

“Phone calls and email. Fine. I assume you can produce the phone records and emails between you?” Mrs. Cheng asked acidly, and Lila had a sudden moment of panic. How to get out of this…?

“W-well, actually, no…” Lila said, thinking furiously. “It’s… actually funny, but my computer and phone were attacked by a virus a few days ago and I lost everything.” Yes, that was a good excuse. They couldn’t ask for records that no longer existed. What a shame. “It was so bad I had to restore the factory settings on my phone, and all my emails were deleted.”

Mrs. Cheng huffed and sat back down, clearly unconvinced. But then, Mrs. Cheng wasn’t the person who mattered here. Lila glanced at the principal, but the woman seemed unmoved. Someone else further down the table- a black boy wearing nerdy glasses- raised his hand.

“Yes, Max, you have a question?”

“More of a clarification, really,” the boy said, in the kind of pompous tone Lila had noticed all geeks and nerds adopted when they were sure they knew more about something than you did. Then again, in this case he was probably right about that… Lila cursed him mentally, sure he was going to try and poke holes in her defense. He looked straight at her, and Lila tried not to let the contempt show as she met his eyes.

“You said the virus wiped out your phone and your computer both, and your emails were deleted?”

Lila nodded, but cautiously.

“Could you not contact your phone provider for your call log, and check with your email provider whether those emails can be recovered from the cloud?”

“Um… I suppose,” Lila said, her eyes widening slightly. “I didn’t think about that,” she said with a little smile that invited anyone who saw it to agree that it was something no one with an ordinary level of technological understanding would think to do. “Anyway, it’s a little late for that now, isn’t it?”

“In my experience, it’s never too late for solid evidence, Miss Rossi,” Ms. Berger said calmly. “However, since you  _ don’t _ currently have this evidence, and since it would no doubt take several days for you to get it, I suggest we move on. Are there any other questions for Miss Rossi?”

“I have one,” the red-headed boy from the cafeteria said. “If you knew you couldn’t draw that well, why did you agree to the competition I suggested? You could have said you couldn’t draw, or suggested something else, like a… a battle of wits, I guess, except with design ideas instead.”

Lila gritted her teeth. This boy was becoming a serious thorn in her side. She opened her mouth, but before she could say anything, Claudette spoke up.

“Actually, I think that was my fault,” she said, glancing briefly around the table with an expression Lila couldn’t read. For a moment Lila thought that she was going to defend her, or at least take the blame, but then Claudette betrayed her  _ again. _

“Lila’s always said that she’s pretty good at drawing, that some famous artists have given her lessons over the years, but she’s never shown us- me- anything she actually drew herself. She said she didn’t want to call attention to herself or seem like she was fishing for praise. So,” Claudette shrugged, “I figured she was probably at least as good as Marinette, and I told her to go for it.”

Unbelievable. Claudette was supposed to be on  _ her _ side, yet here she was… no apology, no contrition… Lila quickly brought her expression back under control from the glare she was trying to pin Claudette with. But Claudette never looked up at her at all. And Lila was not unaware of the sudden tension radiating off her mother. Her mother knew Lila had never taken lessons of any kind, much less from famous artists.

“And besides,” Claudette added, “at the time, Lila was claiming that Marinette had stolen, not just her ideas, but her drawings as well, so that she could re-draw them. So I figured it was best for Lila to get it over with and prove her ability as quickly as possible.” Although she didn’t say so, Lila and everyone else clearly heard the unspoken subtext of  _ ‘I didn’t think it would go so badly.’ _ Lila glared at the table instead of her former friend, hiding her expression. 

When no one else said anything for several moments, the principal said, “Alright. If there are no more questions for Miss Rossi, and she has no more evidence to give to support her claim-”

Lila found herself speaking up out of sheer desperation. “Actually, Ms. Berger, I was wondering where the rest of my witnesses are?”

Ms. Berger looked at her and Lila felt like shrinking down into her seat, even though the principal’s expression didn’t change from a pleasant neutral. Somehow she just knew she wasn’t going to like the answer.

“I’m afraid that, while we did manage to contact your ‘witnesses,’” she said, making the quotes audible somehow, “they mostly declined to come today, and while some of them did give statements over the phone, they don’t pertain to this issue very much, if at all. Additionally, when I asked you to fill out that part of the form, Miss Rossi, it was with the understanding that the people you named would actually have been present, and not, in fact, attending various other schools at the time.”

Lila gulped and nodded, and this time she didn’t have to fake looking scared. Had  _ everyone _ abandoned her? How? And why? 

“Now, I believe it is time for Miss Dupain-Cheng to present her side of the argument,” the principal continued, as if Lila had never interrupted. “She will also be presenting the rest of her complaints against Miss Rossi. Again, I must remind everyone not to interrupt, or otherwise speak unless you are asked a direct question or I have called on you.” Ms. Berger looked at Marinette. “Miss Dupain-Cheng?”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Please don't hate me for the cliffhanger, it's just that this was getting really really long. Marinette will get her turn in the next chapter.


	37. Chapter 37

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Everyone else gets their turn.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Perhaps it's appropriate to post a little vindication, a chapter where a liar is finally and thoroughly exposed and defeated despite her best efforts on this day of all the days of the year.
> 
> Happy Easter!

Marinette stood, surprised at how calm she felt. Maybe it was just all the support she had from her family and friends, or perhaps it had to do with the way the principal wasn’t taking any of Lila’s crap and was actually demanding procedure be followed and evidence presented, not just one person’s word against the other’s. 

“A few days ago, I was in the cafeteria at lunch, showing some of my sketches to my friends and asking for some very specific help regarding the design I was working on. Apparently, we were loud enough to draw a little crowd and before I knew it, Lila accused me of threatening her to give me design ideas, and, at the time of the incident, stealing her art as well only to redraw it and pass it off as my own. She said that I was now doing the same thing to my friends, and that I had no intention of ever giving them credit for ideas that I would use in my design. First of all, I will  _ always _ give credit where it is due, and if my design wins the contest I entered because of the inspiration my friends give me, they will share the glory with me. Secondly, I’ve never contacted Lila voluntarily for anything, not since we were both kids, anyway. And I certainly wouldn’t try to threaten her for design ideas. I have plenty of my own, and I wouldn’t trust her to give me anything good anyway.

And though Lila claims that her own phone records and emails were conveniently lost, mine are still here, and I will volunteer them if it means successfully countering this claim against me.” She flicked her eyes briefly toward Lila. “I’m sure Lila will try to claim that I somehow erased records of phone conversations, or that I deleted the emails in question, but- and I’m sure Max will back me up on this- nothing in this day and age is ever actually completely gone.”

“As my mom already said, I don’t have any problems coming up with ideas on my own  _ despite _ any pressure I might feel by dating someone famous. I think the contest at lunch the other day proved that pretty well. It wasn’t my best work by any means, but I had a limited amount of time, and I think the concept behind it is pretty solid. I might even develop it further in the future. But that’s not to the point. And as for the insinuation that I’m more concerned with what Adrien’s father thinks of me-” Marinette continued, starting to get heated.

Ms. Berger cleared her throat. Marinette stopped and took a breath. “Please confine yourself to the reason we’re here,” was all the principal said, but Marinette nodded. It wasn’t like she didn’t have plenty of evidence on her side.

“Sorry, madame,” she said. “So, I think that’s that claim pretty well refuted. I never asked Lila for design ideas, either threateningly or not, and anyone who looks at my sketchbooks and work will immediately see that there is one mind behind them, not two.” She glared briefly at Lila before turning to her art teacher. 

“Mr. Pelletier, you’ve seen my work over the past semester. Have you seen  _ anything _ that would indicate that I’m not using my own ideas, or that I’m passing off someone else’s work as my own?”

The art teacher sat a little straighter in his chair and shook his head. “No, I can honestly say that everything I’ve seen from you seems to have come straight from your own brain. Your style is still developing, but there are already things that I look for from you, and they haven’t been lacking in anything you’ve presented, and neither have there been any startlingly different elements, such as would indicate that the idea or technique came from someone else. Moreover, some of your unique style elements extend to your other art classes as well, according to the other teachers. We compared notes when you asked me to attend this meeting.” His eyes flicked briefly to the principal. “May I say something further, Ms. Berger? I believe it has bearing on this situation.”

The principal nodded. 

“Marinette, I’ve noticed that you are very,” he searched for the right word, “protective of your work. You seem nervous whenever you are not in direct control over your sketchbooks or portfolio, and that tells me that your own work hasn’t always been safe. I think it’s more than possible you have had your own ideas and work stolen, or perhaps simply ruined, in the past. I find it very difficult to believe, given the character you’ve displayed over the past few months that, having felt that kind of loss, you would do the same thing to anyone else.” Mr. Pelletier sat back in his chair, and folded his arms.

Marinette had started trembling a little when Mr. Pelletier brought up her struggles with believing her work was safe, but Adrien slipped his hand into hers and squeezed gently, reminding her she was among friends. Her dad also patted her arm comfortingly. So she waited as calmly as she could for her teacher to finish, grateful for his contribution.

“Thank you, Mr. Pelletier.” She turned back to the principal. “Does that satisfy this particular claim, madame?”

Ms. Berger sat slightly askew to the table, resting her chin on one hand that was propped up on the table, and she pursed her lips a little in thought before consulting some of the papers on her desk.

“One thing,” she said. “Mr. Kurtzburg, you were the one who organized the competition the girls described, right?”

Down the table a little way Nathanael nodded.

“How did you organize that contest?”

“It… was kind of spur of the moment. I mean, Lila was accusing my classmate and friend of something really bad. And you know how these things go- the longer you wait to prove you didn’t do something, the less people believe it. So I suggested they have a drawing competition, and when they both agreed, I asked for suggestions from the crowd around us for what they should draw. I made sure to pick people I didn’t know, and then when they had a subject, I set a timer on my phone and they went to it.” He paused, frowning. Marinette thought he was probably trying to think of anything he might have left out. “Oh! I also gave Lila a page from my own sketchbook and let her borrow a pencil. And…” he bit his lip. “Well, I did catch her in the art room a couple of days before this happened. I didn’t know who she was at that time, I thought she was probably another art student in a different class, so I just kept looking for my marker bag. But then she was pulling stuff out of random cubbies, so I asked her what she was looking for, and she said that she’d commissioned Marinette for something, and she really needed it that night. She asked if I could tell her which sketchbook was Marinette’s. Well, I knew immediately that she was lying because Marinette never leaves her sketchbook anywhere, and if the girl  _ had _ commissioned something from her and it was due that night, Marinette would already have given it to her, or sent it to her house or something. Sorry, but I’ve heard Marinette stress about deadlines too often to think she would forget something like that.”

Ms. Berger sighed. “Very well. I don’t suppose those drawings still exist?”

“Yeah, um, I have them right here.” Nathanael opened his own portfolio and took out the two drawings. Marinette hadn’t even realized he’d kept them. He started to pass them down to the principal, but she waved her hand. “No, give them to Mr. Pelletier please. I want him to look at them and tell me which one is Miss Dupain-Cheng’s.”

Nathanael handed them over, and the art teacher took a moment to study both drawings. “Well, you have to remember that I was there, too, Ms. Berger, but this one is definitely Marinette’s. Not only did I watch her complete the drawing, though I wasn’t there for the beginning, but it has several style elements I recognize. For example, the way she’s indicated wrinkles here, and here,” he said, pointing to the sleeves and the base of the shirt where it would bunch around the waist a little. “This other drawing is definitely Miss Rossi’s, he said. Again, I watched her, ahem, complete this drawing myself.” His eyebrows rose and he seemed to be searching for something to say. “All I can say about this is that either Miss Rossi lied to her friend about studying drawing at all, or she embarked on that study quite recently. It’s not necessarily a bad design, but it lacks the kind of flair expected from haute couture, and if she ever assisted Marinette with her design ideas, then Marinette must have taken those ideas and molded and polished them into something completely different, because this,” he waved to Lila’s drawing, “and this,” he pointed to Marinette’s, “can’t really even be compared. If that  _ was _ the case- which I doubt, as I said before- then the amount of tweaks and changes Marinette must have made to such a design idea would make it a completely different design, so I don’t think it could be called stealing. Inspiration, perhaps, but not stealing.”

The principal smiled. “Well. I’m convinced that Miss Dupain-Cheng has not stolen anything from Miss Rossi, whether ideas or outright designs. Does anyone disagree?” She looked around the table. Marinette met Lila’s fulminating glare and suppressed a smile when all the adults and most of the teens agreed with the principal. Lila, of course, objected very strenuously, but she was quickly shut down, and her mother and Claudette simply remained silent.

“Good. We can now move on to the complaints against Miss Rossi by Miss Dupain-Cheng, and Mr. Agreste. Miss Dupain-Cheng, would you like to start again?”

Beside her, Adrien raised his hand. “Actually, madame, would you mind if I go first? My complaint actually happened before Marinette’s.”

“Are you alright with that, Miss Dupain-Cheng?”

“Yes, that’s fine with me,” Marinette said, sitting back down. Adrien squeezed her hand again before standing up himself.

“On the first day of school this semester, I was late to lunch, and when I had gone through the line and was looking for a place to sit, Lila almost walked into me. I tried to go around, but she kept getting in my way again, and at first it seemed that we were just having one of those awkward moments. So I suggested she go one way and I go the other. But she stepped in front of me again, and then said that maybe we should just sit together. She said she’d like to get to know me. I told her that I have a girlfriend, and… it was like her whole personality changed in an instant. She said that she’d just given me a chance to be her friend, but if I insisted on it, she could target me as well as she could target Marinette. She even said that she’d already started laying the groundwork to take us both down. I assume that she meant starting rumors about us. I told her that she could try, but that it wouldn’t work. And then she started crying really hard and tried to grab me, but I dodged her and went to sit down with some friends from my fencing team that I spotted at a table. She followed me, saying that I should take her back and that I was only with Marinette because we, um,” he faltered a little, turning red and glancing nervously at Marinette’s parents. “She, uh, insinuated that Marinette and I were… intimate, and that I had stopped dating  _ her _ when she wouldn’t be, um, intimate with me.” Adrien took a deep breath, and it was Marinette’s turn to hold his hand. “So basically, she tried to force a situation on me, and then when I declined her company she first threatened me and my girlfriend, and then lied about dating me previously and tried to ruin my reputation in front of everybody.”

“I see,” Ms. Berger’s voice was calm and neutral, but her expression had stiffened. “And do you have any evidence or witnesses to this?”

“Well, my teammates couldn’t make it today, but I do have an audio recording of most of what happened.”

A sudden movement across the table caught the corner of Marinette’s eye and she looked over to see Lila sitting there with a frozen expression. And it wasn’t the ‘pity me’ look she so often wore, either. No this one was more akin to blind panic.

Adrien had turned to Max, asking him to bring up the audio. Max opened the laptop in front of him and explained that he had asked many of his friends and classmates to test a new audio recording app that he had developed as part of a project he was working on. He also explained that, as all he wanted his friends to do was use the app so he could correlate data on the sound quality offered by different phones, he had made it so that the recordings would automatically upload to a password locked cloud account so he could access the recordings from anywhere at any time, but they wouldn’t be available to anyone else so no one would have their privacy invaded or compromised.

Then he asked Adrien for the date and approximate time of the recording, and then he played the audio. It was just as damning as Adrien had described, events playing out pretty much the way he had said they did. Lila’s bangs were beginning to look a little damp.

Ms. Berger asked a few more questions about how the account was protected, and whether or not it was possible to tamper with a recording before it was uploaded. Max answered politely and completely, and said that the only way a recording could contain false information after the recording was stopped, was if the people speaking were purposely lying.

Ms. Berger nodded and moved on, asking if Lila wanted to refute the complaint in any way. Lila tried, of course- Marinette was beginning to suspect the girl couldn’t accept defeat under any circumstances and was compelled to try and lie her way out of trouble. But after a few minutes of her stumbling over herself trying to claim that it was all a misunderstanding, and eventually starting to cry, Ms. Berger cut her off. And then, for the first time, she asked Claudette for her version of events.

“I, uh…” Claudette said, she glanced at both Marinette and Adrien, and then back to the principal. “I wasn’t there for that. But… but I did talk to Adrien at the beginning of lunch that day. See… Lila and I saw him and Marinette in front of the school that morning, and Lila… she’d been claiming that she and Adrien were dating for a month at that point. So… when Adrien posted to his Instagram that Marinette was his girlfriend, of course I wanted to know what was going on, and Lila said-” a quick sideways glance at her erstwhile friend, “She said that Marinette had stolen Adrien from her during the break while Lila was on vacation. I,” she winced. “I had a class with both of them, and I asked Adrien if I could talk to him about his girlfriend. He said sure, and we agreed to meet in the library during lunch. And that’s… that’s when the truth finally came out.”

Ms. Berger raised her eyebrows. “The truth?”

Claudette closed her eyes, an expression of shame passing over her face. “I’ve been friends with Lila for a long time, but… she’s always made these big claims, you know? Like, she’s friends with all these celebrities, and she’s taken lessons from famous people, and she was always collecting for charities. Well, basically Adrien said that he’s never met Lila before and that he was interested in Marinette for a long time before she agreed to date him. And that was when I realized… see, over break there was a big blow-up about a picture of him with another model, and he and the other model both claimed they weren’t dating, and Adrien posted saying that he would tell everyone who his actual girlfriend was soon. So, of course I was excited and I replied to his post. Well, he messaged me privately, and wanted to know how I knew his girlfriend, so I told him… and he basically said that Lila had lied to me and that he didn’t even know who she was. I still can’t believe I forgot about that,” she finished, in a quieter tone that indicated she was talking more to herself than to the principal.

“I see.” Ms. Berger’s tone was beginning to be icy, though it was easy to tell she was trying to remain impartial. “So, if I’m understanding you correctly, Miss Rossi had made claims to be in a relationship with Mr. Agreste, which claim he denied to you twice before the incident in the lunchroom occurred?”

Claudette nodded, not looking up.

“And you believe him over your long-time friend?”

Claudette nodded again, and this time her chin trembled. Marinette felt an unwelcome yet undeniable pity for her. Claudette had tormented her right along with everyone else who hung around Lila, but… but they had been lied to and manipulated and… and it was wrong, but Marinette could see how much Claudette herself was hurting now.

“Why?” Ms. Berger’s tone was a little gentler.

“Because he had all this evidence!” Claudette burst out, not trying to hide her tears anymore. “I mean, I didn’t  _ want _ to believe it, but I looked some of it up, and… and I thought I had to be looking in the wrong place, or maybe I got the name wrong, so I called Lila, and she… she fed me some bull story about how the charity closed down because it wasn’t funded anymore, but there should have been some trace of it! It should have been mentioned in some article or other, she’d always said it was a big deal and,  _ everybody  _ donated to it! And then she t-tried to get me to give the money I was going to donate to her because she was going to send in her donation and she’d just send mine with hers. And I just kept thinking about all that money... I mean, we’ve been donating for  _ years- _ where did it all go? And I… I believed her about so much. I did some really awful things because of what Lila said. I hurt people,” she said in a small voice, shooting a quick glance at Marinette. “And the only reason I came here today was to make sure that everyone knew the truth because the last thing Marinette deserves- or Adrien, for that matter- is to lose everything because Lila can’t stop lying! I… I owe her that. I owe all of them that.”

And with that, Claudette got up and moved over to Marinette’s side of the table, leaving a chair between herself and Max at the end of the row. She sat down and promptly buried her face in her arms, sobbing quietly. Max looked helplessly down the row at Marinette, who just shrugged and mimed patting her back. So Max hesitantly reached out and patted Claudette’s back.

Ms. Berger sighed. “Well. While that got a little off-topic, I think it’s pretty clear that Miss Rossi did indeed threaten Mr. Agreste, as well as trying to stain his reputation by lying about a previous relationship. Does anyone else have anything to add? No? Then we will move on. Miss Dupain-Cheng, I believe you have another complaint that involves threats.”

So Marinette related the events of meeting Lila in the bathroom, and Max played the second recording. He let it play all the way through, including the part where Lila confidently expressed that it would only be their word against hers and that she was going to claim they had all attacked her. By now Lila looked positively green. Ms. Berger didn’t even ask Lila about her version of events, by now convinced of the veracity of the recordings. There was silence for a few moments while everything sunk in, and then a new voice spoke up, one lightly accented, as if the speaker was not a native Frenchwoman.

“I need to say something.”

Everyone’s eyes turned to Lila’s mother. Adrien grabbed Marinette’s hand again, offering an extra squeeze. Marinette had largely pulled herself back together, but inwardly she was still stunned by Claudette’s unexpected defense and change of heart. But she turned to Mrs. Rossi as well. Lila’s mother looked her directly in the eyes.

“I am sorry that my daughter has hurt you- apparently many times- and I did nothing. I am sorry for you, young man, that my daughter chose to lie about a relationship with you, and then try to threaten you and ruin your reputation when her lie was revealed. And I am sorry that I did not see the signs of something that I knew was a possibility.”

“Mama!” Lila gasped out, pulling at her mother’s arm. But Mrs. Rossi simply placed a hand over Lila’s and continued. 

“My mother was a narcissist. It took me many years, and a lot of help to understand why she was the way she was and why she continued to hurt people with her lies, because of course, she was never diagnosed. But when Lila was little, she would lie constantly, even about little things. Her father and I worried and tried our best to discipline her for it, and to make her see how and why it was wrong. When she got a little older, she stopped lying- or at least, we thought she did, and I naively thought it had been a phase that she had grown out of. I see now that she merely stopped lying to  _ us _ . And, in a way, that was one big lie all on it’s own.” 

Her eyes met Marinette’s and then slid sideways to her parents. “I am sorry that I did not see it. And I am sorry that your daughter has suffered for it.” She turned to Ms. Berger. “I am pulling my daughter out of school. It is not because of anything you or your staff have done. Clearly she is unfit to attend, and I have to arrange for some kind of treatment for her. I apologize for all the trouble she has caused, even in the few short weeks she has been here.”

Lila looked absolutely horrified… and angry. “Mama! You can’t do that, you have no right-”

“No right?” Mrs. Rossi said, turning to Lila. “I am your mother. It is literally my job to make sure you grow up to be a good person, Lila. Someone who helps others instead of trying to manipulate them and tear them down. That happened to me with your grandmother, and I refuse to sit by and let you do the same to others. It might not work, but I have to try.” She stood up, pulling Lila up with her. “If you will excuse us,” she said, and left, Lila stumbling along behind her, clearly shocked into obedience.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Also, a friendly reminder to everyone that trolls starve if you don't feed them. 😉


	38. Chapter 38

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Aftermath

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Okay, I decided to come back and add this beginning note, because I was thinking about it earlier, and I think I should.
> 
> Marinette is at a specific part of her healing journey here. She didn't get here overnight. Her abuse didn't stop yesterday, it stopped months ago, and she got a lot of treatment in the meantime and has an amazing support system.
> 
> If you are a survivor of abuse or bullying or anything traumatic involving other people doing bad things to you, you might not be at the same place. You might not be able to move on, you might not be able to not be angry all the time, you might not be at the point where you can forgive the people who hurt you. 
> 
> And that's okay. 
> 
> Your journey is different. Don't feel guilty for not being able to do something you're not ready for. It's a process. It takes help, and it takes time- sometimes a LOT of time. Be kind to yourself.

Everyone just sat there for a moment, as shocked as Lila had been- perhaps more. Of all the ways Marinette had seen this meeting ending, this had not been one of the outcomes. After what felt like an eternity, the principal shifted a little, the small movement breaking the tension, and it was like everyone took a breath at the same time.

“Well,” Ms. Berger said. “That was certainly unexpected. I admit, I am a little miffed that Mrs. Rossi didn’t even ask what our methods of discipline for these things are. However, perhaps it’s just as well.” She looked at Marinette and Adrien, still holding hands. “I’m very sorry you were both subjected to such treatment by another student. I do wish you would have come forward with your complaints a little earlier, though. Perhaps we could have nipped this in the bud.”

Marinette and Adrien shared a glance. “I’m sorry, madame,” Marinette said. “I… had some bad experiences trying to complain about Lila and her friends at my previous school, and I wanted to have so much evidence accumulated that no one could possibly accuse me- accuse us- of making it up, or simply trying to get someone in trouble.”

Ms. Berger’s mouth twisted. “While that is understandable, I hope you now believe that we will always treat a complaint fairly?”

“Oh yes! I think what happened here was very fair and thorough,” Marinette immediately replied.

“Good.” The principal smiled. “Now, as I am the principal of this school, I am a mandatory reporter. I can’t ask them to bring charges against Miss Rossi for things that didn’t happen here on school grounds, but I can ask them to question her in regard to the still ongoing investigation into the leadership of your previous lycee. Some of what you shared today will have bearing on that. Would you be willing to let me have a copy so I can send it on to the investigators?”

Marinette nodded. “Of course, madame.”

“Thank you.” She took a deep breath. “Now… Claudette…”

Marinette looked down the table. Claudette had stopped crying, but she looked miserable. Marinette was surprised that she didn’t feel happier about that. After all, Claudette had done awful things, said awful things, refused to believe the truth time and time again, and had acted without mercy on more than one occasion. But her months of therapy seemed to have done their work, because all Marinette could feel toward Claudette was a sort of distant vindication, followed by a hope that she could finally learn to be a better person.

This was a far cry from what Marinette had felt at any other time of their acquaintance. In the beginning she’d felt angry and betrayed that yet another person had believed Lila’s lies. After that, anger and hurt that she would target her when she knew nothing about her. And then, when it got really bad, she remembered feeling a simple wish for it all to be over. She’d experienced almost the same emotions in reverse throughout her therapy, and now she just felt a need to move on.

She listened with half an ear to what the principal was saying, really only registering something about a mandatory meeting with Claudette’s parents, and regular visits with the school counselor. 

Before she knew it, everyone was standing up and gathering their things. Marinette rose too, collecting her purse and backpack. She meant to let everyone file out before her, still stuck in her own thoughts and not ready to talk about anything yet. But Claudette seemed to have had the same idea, because she remained sitting, hands pressed between her knees, staring at the table.

Finally Marinette sighed and walked over to her.

“Hey,” she said.

Claudette shrunk into herself a little more. Marinette sighed again and sat down beside her. 

“Look, this isn’t easy for either of us,” she began, “but thank you.”

Claudette frowned a little, finally looking up at her. “... what?”

“I… I don’t know what else to say. You stood up to Lila. You told the truth for once.” Marinette shrugged. “Thanks for that.”

Claudette gaped at her, opening her mouth like a fish a couple of times before finally asking, “Why are you being nice to me? I don’t deserve it! You should hate me!” she looked back down at the table. “I… kinda hate myself.”

“Yeah…” Marinette agreed with her. “I know I should hate you. I used to hate you, and I still don’t like that you were willing to be so… cruel, just on someone’s say-so. But... I don’t know. There’s just no point anymore? What would hating you get me? I think it would just be a lot of headaches I don’t need or want. Am I still angry about what you all did to me and to Tikki? Yes, I am. But not as often. It’s not all I think about anymore. I have my life to live, Claudette, and I can’t do that if I’m hanging on to things that, yes, were absolutely awful and should never have happened, but that are also in the past. They still affect me, and I’m going to be going to therapy for a long time… but I’ve started to heal. Opening up that wound again isn’t what I need right now.

You proved today that you are capable of seeing the truth and acting on it, however long it took you to get there. And besides, Lila lied to you, too. To all of you. Sure, you did horrible things while you believed those lies, but… I guess I just want to leave here thinking that you’ve learned your lesson and you’re going to do better from now on. Because you can be better, Claudette. That’s something everyone can do, no matter where they’re starting from.”

Claudette snorted a soft laugh. “I guess I shouldn’t be surprised that you’re reacting this way… but I am. I’m still… sorting through all the lies, I guess. Trying to find the truth by looking at how, where, and when Lila lied- especially about you and Tikki. And by the way, I want you to know that I had  _ nothing _ to do with that!  _ That _ was all Suzanna, I swear!” 

Marinette must have looked like she didn’t quite believe that, because Claudette paled a little and said, “I know, that must sound exactly like something Lila would say, but… I’m being honest. I really had no idea. If I had, I would have stopped it. I- we,” she ran a hand through her hair and looked away, ashamed. “Lila had been hinting that getting Plagg away from Tikki would give Tikki something to think about beside bullying her.” She shook her head, as if rejecting the knowledge that she’d ever believed Tikki was bullying Lila. “Anyway… we probably would have done something eventually, but it definitely wouldn’t have been assault.”

“No?” Marinette asked, and heard the skepticism in her own voice. “Because what you did to me would certainly count as assault.”

This time Claudette flushed. “I… deserved that,” she said quietly. “For what it’s worth- and I know that probably isn’t much- I’m sorry about that. It… it did start to bother me towards the end. I think, if you hadn’t left, that… I want to think I would have put a stop to it, but… now I don’t know. I was so  _ sure _ …” Claudette trailed off, and Marinette might have been tempted to think she was being defensive if she hadn’t noticed the green tinge to Claudette’s face. Like she was going to be sick.

“Well, at least you’re sure now,” Marinette said firmly. “Just keep questioning yourself, Claudette. Eventually you’ll come up with the right answers.”

She got up and left, feeling unsettled with how the conversation had gone. Adrien and her parents were waiting out in the hall for her.

“So, how did it go?” Adrien asked, falling into step beside her. Marinette threw him a look, but his smile was gentle and his eyes questioning. He really wanted to know. Marinette huffed out a breath.

“Okay, I guess? I’m not quite sure how to feel about it.” She walked a few more steps. “I don’t hate her, you know. Not now. I’m not sure I’m ready to really forgive her yet, but the fact that she stood up for me against Lila today goes a… well, not a long way, but a little way towards that.”

Adrien nodded, and took her hand. Marinette squeezed it and bit her lip, shyly. “So…” she said, glancing at him side-eyed. “Want to go get some ice-cream?”

Adrien’s smile widened. “I already texted Kagami and the others. They’ll be waiting for us.”

Marinette turned around to face her parents as they left the school building. “Is it okay if I go get ice cream with Adrien and everyone?”

Tom and Sabine exchanged looks, but then smiled and said that was fine. “Just don’t be home too late. It’s still a school night.”

“Of course, Maman,” Marinette said, just as Adrien said, “I’ll make sure she gets home in time for dinner.” They shared a glance and giggled, making Marinette’s parents grow matching amused smiles.

At the ice-cream parlor, it turned out that Adrien had reserved the entire small space for their party- which was a good thing since there were so many of them and they were being so loud. Marinette was tempted to tease Adrien for acting like a typical rich kid, but then she noticed that other customers were still being served, but it was take-out only service. And when she went up to order her own celebratory ice-cream, she overheard a customer asking why the price was so low, and the cashier said that her party was celebrating something, and had agreed to cover half the price of everyone’s order while they took up all the indoor tables.

So instead of dirty looks and annoyed huffs and passive aggressive comments about ‘spoiled, disrespectful teens,’ she and her friends were getting amused smiles and friendly waves and even the occasional ‘congratulations’ as people came and went. All in all, Marinette decided to just let Adrien be generous, and gave him a sweet kiss on his cheek when she got back with her ice cream. It was worth it for the way he blushed, too.

\----

On the drive back to the bakery, Marinette asked Adrien about what his father was likely to do, now that Lila was effectively out of their hair.

“I mean, I know she spread rumors and tried to ruin your reputation, but… there doesn’t seem to be much damage done,” she said. Not because she thought Lila should be spared a lawsuit, but because the fact that there was little damage done might hurt Adrien’s chances in court.

“I don’t know,” Adrien admitted. “He knows about the rumors and everything, I even told him about the audio recordings we got of her threatening me and you. I guess we’ll just have to wait and see.” He scooted as close to her as the seatbelts would allow. “Not that it doesn’t matter or anything, because it does, but… right now I just want to focus on you.”

Marinette was more than willing to melt into his embrace, as always finding a rightness in being close to him that defied explanation.

“I’m really proud of you for talking to Claudette, you know,” he said, chin propped on the top of her head. Marinette sighed and hummed contentedly. “You continue to amaze me with your bravery, my lady.”

Marinette giggled. “ ‘My lady?’ Well, then ‘good sir knight,’ how can I repay this lavish compliment?”

“If you look at me, you’ll find out,” he said, coyly.

Marinette giggled again, but raised her head for a kiss that didn’t stay chaste for very long.

\----

“Nathalie, have we gotten an update from the school about the Rossi situation?” Gabriel Agreste asked, in the car on the way home that evening.

Adrien should be home soon, and he knew his son would have questions about what legal repercussions Miss Rossi could be facing from his quarter. He knew the school meeting had been set for that afternoon, and if he hadn’t had an appointment with a textiles agent from China that afternoon that had been scheduled for months and could not be put off or moved up, he would have been there himself. And it would have been bad business to blow off the meeting, as this was a representative for a company he was trying to cut a deal with. They were among the few textile factories in China that set a decent wage for their workers, and as a nod to Emilie’s legacy, Gabriel tried his best to only deal with those who dealt fairly with their own workers. Unfortunately, he’d also needed Nathalie and her tablet for the meeting. He’d already apologized to Adrien, but at least his son had seemed to be fine with the idea of facing the liar on his own.

He was just glad the expected scandal had never really taken off. When he’d first heard about the girl’s threat and the way she’d tried to implement it, he’d been very concerned. It did not take much of an accusation from a girl against a guy to ruin his reputation, and if it had taken off… well, that hadn’t happened, for whatever reason. Nathalie would have a better idea of why that was, but at the moment, all Gabriel was concerned with was that it  _ hadn’t _ . And to assure that it  _ wouldn’t _ in the future, he wanted to make it crystal clear to both the girl and her family that he did not appreciate liars targeting his son.

Nathalie consulted her messages.

“I got a text from Adrien earlier that the meeting went very well, and that Miss Rossi will no longer be attending school with him.”

“So she was expelled? Excellent. That makes our case look stronger.”

Nathalie was still looking at her tablet. “No, not quite… In the email Ms. Berger sent me, she said that Mrs. Rossi withdrew her daughter from the school without even giving her a chance to expel her. Now, it does seem that she understood how bad her daughter had been, although Ms. Berger doesn’t give me any details on that. I’m assuming there is some privacy policy in play there.”

Gabriel pursed his lips. “Hmm. I’m not sure I like that. It’s too vague. I’ll talk with the lawyers again, but I’d like to pursue something against her. I have no faith in a mother who either willfully ignored or was too stupid to see what her daughter was doing all these years. Even a summary judgement against her would hurt her ability to successfully tarnish Adrien or Marinette’s reputation. How early can you clear my schedule for that meeting?”

“I notified Legal last week, and they’ll meet with you the day after tomorrow, sir. I set it up that way so that anything that came to light in the school meeting could be shared and at least partially taken into account before they gave you their advice.”

Gabriel smiled at her. “Thank you, Nathalie. As always, I don’t know what I would do without you.”

Nathalie scoffed. “There are plenty of personal assistants in the world, sir. I assure you, you could find another just as dedicated within… oh, a couple of years.”

Gabriel laughed at that, and Nathalie responded with a demure smile. They discussed other business for the rest of the ride.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Sorry there was a longer delay for this one, and that it's a bit shorter. I didn't want to start anything heavier at the end of the chapter.
> 
> I hope everyone's doing well with the quarantining! I feel for everyone doing work and school from home- I know I always learn and work better in a separate space. And for those of you in a job where it's impossible to work from home, I hope you've either found something you *can* do from home, or that your job is compensating you for this involuntary leave of absence.


	39. Chapter 39

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Adrien gets nervous about Valentine's day and decides to take Marinette out on a real date before then, just for practice.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> We are so close to the end... and guess what- you get to help me decide what that end will be! (Happy, either way, but...)
> 
> I did a poll on the discord server, but I wanted to get other opinions, too, so please read the end notes and leave a comment with your vote. Thanks!

Valentine's Day was just around the corner- literally- and Adrien was feeling the pressure. Sure, he and Marinette had been out for coffee (hot chocolate for her, actually) and similar small outings, and those had gone just fine. But Valentine’s Day was a Big Deal ™ and he knew that. It wasn’t that he didn’t feel up to giving Marinette the most romantic evening of her life, but… well, okay, yes, that was exactly how he felt about it. 

“I mean, yes, I’ve known her for months now, and we’ve been dating a few weeks, but it’s not like I know all her wants and desires, Nino,” he complained, making circuits around his room. It couldn’t really be called pacing, the space was too big for that, but it was definitely nerves making him get up and move.

Nino, meanwhile, lounged on the couch, eyes fixed to the tv screen as he tried to beat Adrien’s highscore on Mario Kart. “Uh-huh,” he said absently. Adrien didn’t even notice his abstraction, because he’d gotten a sudden idea.

“Hey! We still haven’t gone on that double-date with Carmine and Sebastian! Do you think she’d mind a double-date?”

It took a moment, but when what he’d said actually registered with Nino, he paused the game and turned around to glare at Adrien.

“Dude. It’s  _ Valentine's Day. _ I mean, sure, you could ask her… it’s your funeral, man,” he said, turning back to the screen. “Besides, if she was going to agree to double for such an important date, don’t you think that she’d rather have me and Alya, or Tikki and Plagg, over two people she hardly knows, one of whom she hasn’t even met? Not to mention that Carmine’s a model. So, you know, kind of intimidating on that front?”

“I’m a model, too, Nino,” Adrien pointed out. “And I definitely chose Marinette over every single model I know.” He paused to think. “Yeah, I can’t see me dumping her for someone who only  _ looks _ pretty. Besides, once you're up close and personal, a lot of the glitz and glamor just gets either tacky or gross, and sometimes both. Like, contouring for photoshoots can get really crazy, Nino, and it’s even worse for shows. It’s only attractive from a distance.”

“Yeah, but… look, it doesn’t make sense to me, but Alya says that sometimes girls can get a little insecure, okay? I’m just sayin’- probably not the best idea, bro. At least not for Valentine’s.”

Adrien groaned and ran his fingers through his hair. “It’s just so… intimidating. I mean, how did you deal with this when you and Alya first got together?”

“Dude. That was so long ago, I don’t even remember. Lemme call Alya real quick.” Nino put down the controller and called Alya, putting her on speaker. “Hey babe. Quick question. Adrien’s freaking out about Valentine's Day and I can’t remember what we did for our first one. I remember being terrified, and thinking you were gorgeous, but the rest of the night is fuzzy.”

Adrien stared at his friend in awe. He could imagine a dim and distant future where he wasn’t afraid to open up so freely to his girlfriend (hopefully still Marinette) in fear of being immediately dumped, but to actually see a relationship between people of his age that was actually at that point already? Wow.

Alya burst out laughing. “Oh, babe- I wish I had the recorder going for that one! You goofus… let’s see, you took me… um… geez, now I can’t remember either.” She laughed again. “Hey, here’s an idea. Why don’t you tell loverboy to take Marinette on a proper date before then? Kind of like a warm-up date. He can get some idea of what Mari likes and doesn’t like, and then Valentine's is only their second real date instead of the first, which takes a lot of the pressure off.” There was a pause. “And Mari says to tell Adrien that as long as he picks something he likes to do that she’ll have fun, too.”

Adrien groaned again, hiding his flaming face in his hands. Although, who he was hiding it from was up in the air, since no one but Nino was actually present. Nino shot him an apologetic look and grinned sheepishly when Adrien came up for air.

“Okay, thanks Alya and, apparently, Marinette,” Adrien said loudly, making the ‘cut-off’ gesture so Nino would hang up. Nino bit his lip, clearly suppressing a laugh and said, “I think I gotta go, babe. Have fun, alright?”

“Sure thing, I always have fun with my bestie. Bye loverboy! Bye Nino.”

Adrien collapsed on the couch, one arm over his face as he indulged in dramatics. Nino raised an eyebrow and tossed the second controller at him. It landed next to his foot. “Come on, Adrien. Get out of your head and play a little. You know it’ll help.”

Adrien sat up and grumbled, “Fine.” He got the controller and Nino started a new game. He hated to admit it, but Nino was right- an hour of playing video games later, and Adrien was much less nervous about planning his and Marinette’s first real date. Nino had to go- he had a gig to set up later that evening and needed to sort out his playlists- but Adrien had gotten an idea so he didn’t mind.

He spent the hour before dinner checking reviews online, and by the time Nathalie knocked on his door for supper, he had made a couple of reservations. He only hoped Marinette would like what he had planned.

\----

“So, where are we going?” Marinette asked, cute and bubbly, with her hair up in two buns like the day of the gaming tournament. It was a good look on her, and Adrien was once again mesmerized. As a concession to Gabriel’s paranoia, they were taking the car to their first destination, and he picked her up in the early afternoon, telling her only to dress ‘comfy- casual, something you can move in, and if you wear high heels, make sure they’re broken in and not too high.’

As a result, he got a Marinette who was reprising her gaming tournament outfit, but had replaced the canvas sneakers with a pair of scuffed up black pumps with a 2” heel. His heartbeat picked up rapidly as soon as he saw her. He waited patiently for her to button her peacoat and then wrapped her in a quick hug before leading her out to the car.

“So?” she pressed, and Adrien couldn’t help the goofy smile, but he tried to channel his inner smooth boi and simply said, “That’s for me to know, and you to find out.”

Marinette squirmed in her seat as he got in on the other side, pouting a little, and it took an act of sheer will to turn away and buckle his seatbelt instead of just… kissing her. For the whole afternoon. Taking a deep breath, he looked out the window and said, “Patience, princess. It’s a virtue, you know.” He took a risk and turned to smirk at her. “You know, one of these days, dad will finally trust me to drive the car myself!” 

He held up the little black cat keychain Marinette had given him months ago. At the moment it only had two keys on it, both to his school lockers- one for books, the other for his fencing equipment- but she didn’t need to know that. Marinette smiled at the keychain and then at him, tucking her arm around his.

“How did you do with the driving lessons, anyway? I never heard- I guess everything just got so crazy busy.”

They spent the time talking about various little things in their lives and it didn’t feel like the half-hour drive it was before they arrived. Marinette tried to beat him to opening her own car door, but Adrien slid across the trunk to get there before she could do more than unlatch it. She smiled ruefully up at him but got out without saying anything. Adrien smirked again, and took her hand. 

They were in front of a small dance studio facing the Seine. Marinette raised her eyebrow, and Adrien stopped for a moment, holding both her hands. He took a deep breath.

“So, you know how you were kind of self-conscious when we were dancing at your party?”

Marinette nodded cautiously.

“Well, I’d really like to take you out for dinner and dancing, but… I thought maybe it would be nicer for you if you had a lesson beforehand? Nothing too complicated,” he hurried to assure her, “just basic steps, and maybe a quick lesson in waltzing if that’s okay? I just really want to go dancing with you, but I’ve had lessons before and I know you haven’t. Honestly, I don’t even think it’ll take you long to pick it up. You’re already so graceful.” 

A slow smile spread over Marinette’s face, and Adrien felt a surge of relief. This had been a gamble on his part, and he had been prepared for Marinette to nix the idea entirely… but it would have been a not-that-great beginning to their first official date.

“That’s a wonderful idea, Adrien. I… I’d really like to dance with you, too, but I admit I’m… not that confident.” She frowned a little then. “But is this all we’re doing today?”

“No, no! I have dinner reservations for us afterwards. It’s not that far and we can walk from here.”

“But… I mean, after a dance lesson, won’t we be sweaty? And… I’m not exactly dressed for a dinner date.”

Adrien smirked. “I already took care of that. They have a small changing room here with a shower. And I’ve got Tikki and Alya picking out your dress and shoes while we have our lesson. Gorilla will pick it up and bring it here.” His smirk dropped abruptly and he rubbed the back of his head. “Is, is that okay? I thought- they’re your best friends, they must know what you like…”

Marinette laughed. “Yes, Adrien, that’s fine! Honestly, it kinda takes the pressure off me to pick the perfect outfit, so that’s nice, too.”

“Oh, good. Well… shall we?” He crooked his elbow like a gentleman, and she took it like a lady, and they walked into the small studio.

He gave his name at the desk, and the receptionist told them a room number on the second floor. They went up a small, narrow staircase and found the room pretty quickly, since there were only three up here.

“Can I just say I’m really looking forward to this?” Adrien said, pausing with his hand on the doorknob. “A whole afternoon and evening of dancing with you… holding you in my arms…”

Marinette giggled, blushing. “I don’t know, you might not want to after I spend all afternoon breaking your toes.”

“Meow-ch!” Adrien grinned, before kissing her cheek. “But, seriously, that’s nonsense. I know how fast you learn- you’ll be purrfect in no time.” He opened the door and they walked in. “Hello, Mrs. Godfrey. How are you?”

A short, muscular woman with iron-grey hair and an ageless face stood up from the corner where she was fiddling with an old-fashioned stereo. She walked toward them smiling broadly.

“Hello hello! But you know my rules, Adrien- if you’re going to call me Mrs. Godfrey, you’ll have to put up with me calling you  _ Mister Agreste,” _ she said, suddenly going stiff and saluting as she said it. Adrien laughed. 

“Alright fine, Amy,” he said, giving in. He noticed Marinette hanging back and pulled her forward gently. “This is Amy Godfrey, and she’s been my dance instructor whenever I’ve needed one ever since I graduated from the kiddie classes. She's really fun, and she’s really patient. Amy, this is my girlfriend, Marinette. Marinette, Amy,” he said, making the introductions smoothly.

“It’s a pleasure to meet you,” Amy said, with another smile. Then she clapped her hands. “Now, are we learning something specific today? I know your father has an event coming up…”

Adrien smiled. “Actually no. We’re just here so Marinette can get a handle on some basic steps, maybe practice a little waltzing? I’m taking her out to dinner later, but… well, I’ve had lessons for years, and she’s never had any.”

“I’m… a little self-conscious,” Marinette added in a soft voice. Adrien squeezed her hand.

“Well, don’t you worry about that honey, ‘cause Mama Amy will have you twirling around this floor before you know it. And if you do good, I’ll even let Adrien here waltz with you before your time’s up.”

Marinette blushed and bit her bottom lip. Adrien reached over and gently pulled it back out with his thumb, winking at her. Amy clapped her hands again, calling their attention back to her.

“Now, Adrien was right- dancing is mostly repetition. You’ll see, Marinette- once you have a few steps down, you just mix them up and voila! A new dance! We’ll start with some basic stretches, and then I want to see you two just walk around the room for a minute just to see how you move.” Amy went back to the stereo and turned on some pop-music, then led them through basic stretches. Adrien tried to focus on the stretches instead of stealing glances at Marinette, who didn’t seem to have any trouble with them. He recalled that she did yoga with her mom at least twice a week.

When they were warmed up, they walked around the room, speeding up and slowing down as Amy directed, and then Amy showed them a few simple steps. She didn’t get frustrated or worry when Marinette went the wrong way, or got her feet tangled, she just took her through the sequence again, step by step until Marinette had it down. By the end of the first hour, Adrien got to actually hold Marinette while they tried out a simple sequence together. Marinette got nervous again at that, but he just smiled at her and told her to listen to the music because it would help. Before long they were stepping together with confidence, and Marinette was glowing.

Adrien, to whom this was routine, couldn’t keep his eyes off her, feet moving automatically. She was still looking down at her feet half the time, but he could tell she was feeling more confident with every attempt.

During the second hour of their lesson, Amy coached them through a very slow waltz. This time Marinette did step on his toes a few times.

“I’m sorry,” she said, pulling away after the fifth time. “I just can never remember if we’re supposed to twirl or move down the room.”

Adrien smiled. “It’s alright, Marinette. You’re doing really well! Just follow my lead.”

“But what does that even mean?” Marinette asked. “That’s never really made sense to me.”

“Adrien’s right, honey- here. Let me show you something.”

Amy took his place and Marinette hesitantly stepped back into the hold. Amy demonstrated how the hand on her back was for guidance as well as support. “See, when you feel  _ this _ , you’ll be twirling round and round, and when you feel  _ this _ you’ll be going backward, and when you feel  _ this _ …”

Adrien stood back and watched, seeing understanding dawn on Marinette’s face. “Oh! I get it. I mean, I’ll probably still get it wrong half the time, but...”

“That’s why you practice sweetie. Now, let me see you do it with Adrien again.”

Adrien stepped back, more than happy to be close to Marinette again, even though they were both sweating by now. His arms were getting a little tired from holding the pose, and he knew Marinette probably felt the same. He hadn’t waltzed in a while, but it was a romantic dance, and he’d really wanted Marinette to learn it.

This time he made sure to apply a little more pressure to signal her, and Marinette followed his lead more often than not. And there were no more stepped on toes. By the end of the lesson she just about had the hang of it, and was even brave enough to look up at him once in a while. Adrien relished in the feeling of moving in sync with her, even if it wasn’t quite perfect yet.

After some cooldown stretches, they both thanked Amy and said they’d be back. Adrien led the way to a small locker room. As promised, Gorilla had delivered a dress bag for Marinette containing everything she might need and one for Adrien as well, so they parted to get cleaned up and ready.

\----

Adrien had just finished knotting the tie around his neck when he heard Marinette calling his name softly. He turned quickly, and his heart nearly stopped. He had opted for a traditional look, with a black suit and red tie, and he knew Alya had asked him what he’d be wearing, so he wasn’t surprised that Marinette’s dress was red. But oh… red was  _ definitely _ Marinette’s color.

“Wow,” he heard himself say, too dazed to be embarrassed.

Marinette had left her hair down, but she had parted it differently, using a red headband to keep it in place. Her dress was a one-shoulder design that flowed loosely around her torso, gathered by a gold-link belt that hugged her hips, the extra links hanging down on one side. It didn’t have much in the way of ornamentation, but there was some kind of shimmer effect going on, both around the asymmetrical hem and edging the neckline. Marinette wore gold earrings to complement the belt, and her makeup was more sophisticated than he’d seen her wear, but not too much. In short, she was stunning.

She was also giggling, turning her head shyly away. With two short steps he crossed the distance between them. 

“Marinette, you…” he trailed off. He reached for her cheek, gently turning her face to look at him. “May I?” he asked, breathless already. Marinette nodded, and he had just a moment to notice how her eyes were shining before he closed his own to savor a slow, soft kiss.

“I’d ask if you found everything you needed, but…” he said softly, when they finally pulled away from each other. “It’s pretty clear you did.”

“What about you?” Marinette asked, a bit breathless herself. “I don’t think I’ve ever seen you look so…” she blushed, “so… wow.”

That made him chuckle. “Come to one of my photoshoots sometime,” he said. “I look like this a lot more at those.”

“Yeah…” Marinette said, with a bemused half-smile. “I mean, not that I don't like you normally- how you look- I mean, you- ugh." She took a breath while Adrien tried to suppress his laughter. "I _mean_ , I like you all the time no matter how you look, but _this_... I think the photographer probably wouldn’t like it if I messed up your hair and make-up between shots.”

Adrien leaned in close, resting his forehead against hers. “I wouldn’t mind,” he said- but he knew what she meant. Sure, his dad liked her now, but if she started coming between him and his job… well. That could change. He took a deep breath- telling himself it hadn’t happened yet, and probably wouldn’t- and took a calculated step back.

“Well,” he said, more briskly now that his brain was starting to function again. “We should probably get going if we’re going to make our reservation.”

She met his adoring gaze with her own. “Okay.”

This was going to be the best night of his life, Adrien was sure of it.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Ok, so there's two ways this story can end.
> 
> 1\. Adrien and Marinette finish their date and have a marvelous time. Lila's been dealt with and everything is looking rosy for the future.
> 
> 2\. Adrien and Marinette have an encounter with Lila which will cause both of them more pain and will definitely get Lila some criminal charges. Still an overall happy ending.
> 
> So, which one would you like to see?


	40. The Fluffy End

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Adrien and Marinette have a marvelous time on the rest of their date.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Okay, so... the poll was closer than I expected, but in the end, option 2 won.
> 
> HOWEVER.
> 
> Plot-wise there is no reason I can't give y'all both. So, here is the fluffy end. If you wanted option 1 and aren't comfortable reading further than this, may I suggest you unsubscribe to this work after reading this chapter? The last thing I want is for you to feel like you have to keep reading when you really wanted the fluffy ending.

It was getting dark when they left the dance studio, and the frigid wind convinced Adrien to call Gorilla for the car instead of walking after all.

“Do you mind?” he asked, watching Marinette shiver as they stood just outside the doors. There had been an ice storm just a few days ago, and there were still patches of ice here and there, though the weather had warmed a little since then, and most of the ice was gone. 

“No,” Marinette said, smiling at him. She took his hand. “I’d like to walk with you, but it’s getting cold.”

“Yeah,” he said. “Do you want to wait inside?”

But the Gorilla pulled up just then. He must have found a place to park pretty close to the studio. Adrien held the door for her, then went around to the other side. This time when he got in his eye was drawn to Marinette’s knee peeking out of the hem of her dress. He swallowed hard and met her eyes, telling himself firmly to stop imagining things.

“So, did you design it yourself? Your dress, I mean. It doesn’t look quite like anything I’ve seen recently.”

“Yeah, I did actually,” Marinette said, blushing. “It took a few tries to get it right, but,” she looked down, smoothing the material. “I’m pretty happy with how it turned out.”

“Good,” he said, not giving in to temptation and keeping his eyes locked to her face.

“I mean, it did kind of get me the reaction I was hoping for,” she said, almost too soft to hear. She glanced at him shyly. Adrien took a deep breath. 

“Is that so?”

“Yep.”

“And what kind of reaction were you hoping for?”

“Well…” Marinette trailed off, blushing. 

“Marinette,” Adrien said in a low voice. She looked at him. “You are amazing. Anyone who can’t see that, or worse, can’t see that until you look… well, how you look right now- which is  _ stunning _ , by the way- … if they can’t see that, then they don’t deserve your attention.”

She reached over and took his hand. “I know. Which is why I’m out with you instead of someone else.”

Luckily Adrien didn’t have to come up with an appropriate-for-their-current-circumstances response for that, because Gorilla pulled up in front of the restaurant. The cold air did a lot to calm his blush. As he ran around to open the door for her, he noticed a particular pattern of lights on a ship moored at the side of the river a short walk down from the restaurant and smiled. Luka must have gotten his message in time.

He ushered Marinette into the restaurant and gave his name to the maitre’d. Their table was already ready, so they sat down immediately.

“So,” Adrien said. “Just order whatever looks good to you, okay?”

Marinette had unfolded her menu already and was scanning it. She frowned slightly. “Adrien, there aren’t any prices listed.”

Adrien raised his eyebrows. “I know. It’s fine, Marinette, really.” He reached across the small table for her hand. “It’s a date,” he said softly. “Let me spoil you a little?”

Marinette smiled again. “Fine, but next time I get to spoil you.”

Adrien shook his head. “You spoil me everyday, princess, with all those pastries you bring me.” He chuckled. “I’m pretty sure I’ve eaten enough of them to equal the price of a meal here, by now.”

Marinette rolled her eyes, but turned her attention back to the menu, and Adrien did the same.

\----

Marinette tried to calm her racing heart. Surely, surely it would slow down soon, right? It wasn’t like she’d never seen Adrien all dressed up and polished before- half the billboards in Paris regularly featured him that way, after all. But that was from a distance, and… she eyed him over her menu again. A two dimensional image didn’t do him justice however large it was, because seeing him across a table, moving and breathing, he suddenly seemed… larger than life. She found herself reviewing everything that had ever happened between them, wondering how it was she got so lucky as to catch his attention in the first place. He was  _ Adrien Agreste! _ He could have had anyone,  _ anyone _ … and yet he had chosen her. 

She could still remember how the fabric of his suit jacket felt under her fingers in the locker room when he’d kissed her. How it unexpectedly transferred his warmth right to her hands. How incredible his own hands on her thinly draped waist felt, pulling her close. She’d almost felt naked under his touch, and that had been… unexpected, but not in a bad way. It was as if she was suddenly seeing him in a different light, and… and he was seeing her the same way. The thought stole her breath as often as she dared to think it. It was exciting, but she wasn’t sure how or even if to act on it.

She pulled her attention back to the menu, picking something almost at random. She was pretty sure everything would be good at a restaurant like this, and she wasn’t a particularly picky eater. She liked to experiment and dabble, trying new things just to see how they tasted- no doubt a side-effect of being used as a taste-tester for her parents recipes growing up. So she decided quickly, and then put her menu down, trying to calm herself by thinking of the sweet and helpful notes Alya and Tikki had slipped into her make-up bag.

_ Have a wonderful time, Mari _ , Tikki had written in her familiar spiky script.  _ You deserve it. And you deserve him. I have no doubt he’s going to come out looking like a dream from heaven, and you’re going to start second guessing yourself.  _ _ Don’t _ _. He picked  _ _ you _ _. He likes  _ _ you _ _.  _ _ Relax _ _. And don’t forget to call and tell me everything tomorrow! _

_ P.s. There might be a surprise for you at the end of the night. Not telling, because it might fall through, but… something to look forward to if the rest of it sucks! _

Marinette smiled, remembering it. Tikki had known her longest, and knew her tendency to doubt herself and her own self-worth- something she had Lila to thank for, she now knew. Oh, Dr. Fu had said that every teenager had some level of social anxiety, but hers was magnified by the bullying she’d endured. She reminded herself of that, and glanced up to see Adrien smiling at her, looking like a model of perfection… and lost her breath again.

But then Alya’s note came to her rescue.

_ Ok girl. I know he cleans up nice, but  _ _ DON’T FORGET _ _ that he’s a  _ _ complete dork _ _! Besides, you are going to knock his socks off in this dress of yours! Girl! You’ve been holding out on me! Seriously though, if you get nervous, just tell him a pun. Or start talking video games. I guarantee you won’t stay nervous for long after that. _

So Marinette took a shaky breath... and Alya’s advice. She cleared her throat.

“The new update for UMS online comes out this weekend. People have been talking in the forums... I heard they’re going to scrap the flight option entirely.”

“Oh yeah, I heard that too, but I don’t believe it,” Adrien said, his eyes lighting up. He launched into the theories he’d heard and soon they were arguing over which changes they’d make themselves if they had the option.

And just like that the tension between them evaporated and Marinette felt comfortable again. Bless Alya. She’d have to design something really nice for her.

\----

When they were finished eating and waiting on the dessert course, a soft melody from the piano caught Adrien’s attention. He met Marinette’s eyes across the table and said, “May I have this dance?”

Marinette looked nervous for a second, but then she nodded and they both stood, making their way to the small section of floor reserved for dancing couples. They’d seen several stand up for a dance or two since they were seated, so Marinette felt a lot less self-conscious. They were just another pair of dancers, and the couples she’d seen so far hadn’t attempted anything particularly difficult.

Adrien drew her close and began with the simple sequence she’d learned earlier. For a few minutes she was distracted by minding her steps, but then everything seemed to fall into place and she noticed again how warm his hands were, and how the fabric of her dress seemed unbearably thin… how silky the fabric of his jacket… how close he was… the blush rose to her cheeks again, but she noticed that he looked just as flushed as she felt when she dared to look up at him. It was affecting him, too, and that made her feel infinitely better. So she relaxed into the dance and before long it was over.

They both saw the waiter deposit their shared dessert on the table, so they went back over. Adrien went to stand behind her chair as she sat down, scooting it in for her. She blushed harder, staring at him wide-eyed as he picked up her hand to kiss it before sitting down himself.

Completely losing her cool, she raised both hands to her burning cheeks and whimpered. “Adrien if you keep doing things like that, I’m going to  _ die. _ Just… spontaneously combust. Poof! No more Marinette.”

He chuckled, and when she felt she could look at him again, he looked sheepish. 

“Sorry, Mari,” he said softly. He reached his fork over to the dessert, but then paused half way and looked up at her. The burning warmth of his look sent her right back over the edge into near hyperventilation. 

“Actually, I’m not sorry. I’m glad I take your breath away, because you do the same to me, and… it sure would be a pity if only one of us had to deal with,” he breathed out a shaky laugh, “well, all of this,” he finished, blushing himself, but smiling anyway. He put the fork down and took her hand instead. “You’re incredibly beautiful, Marinette,” he said. “And I kinda wish my suit  _ didn’t _ have pockets.”

He winked, surprising a laugh out of her and breaking the tension yet again. They dug into the dessert, both wondering how on earth they would get through the rest of the evening without any more embarrassment.

\----

The answer, of course, was to talk about the situation with Lila. 

“So, dad’s lawyers called with the news yesterday,” Adrien said as they walked up river a ways. There was no railing here for some reason, though there was the usual quay between the bridges, so Adrien walked closest to the edge. The wind had died down, so even though it was cold, as long as they kept moving it wasn’t too bad. Besides, the night and the setting were very romantic. 

Adrien swung their clasped hands, thankful for this time alone with her, and for the night which mostly hid his face. He hadn’t really wanted to talk about it, but it concerned Marinette, and she’d asked him. The civil suit was filed at least partially on her behalf as well.

“And?” she asked. There was a bit of tension in her voice that he didn’t miss.

“And… they said Mrs. Rossi seemed to understand the implications. Dad says he thinks she’ll try to settle out of court. Having a civil suit brought against her daughter isn’t the best look for an ambassador. Especially when it’s about bullying.”

Marinette was quiet for a moment. “I’m not sure how to feel about that. It kinda seems… not enough.”

“I know,” Adrien said, “but at the same time, do you really want to drag everything out in front of a judge?”

Marinette grimaced at that. “Well… but I mean, a lot of the problems I had with her was that she  _ wasn’t _ held accountable! No, I don’t really want to go into everything in a court, but I also think she won’t really understand the consequences of her behavior if her mom succeeds in buying her way out of it.”

Adrien squeezed her hand, hearing the note of frustration in her tone. “I’m sorry. I shouldn’t have said anything right now.”

“No, don’t be. It’s important. I know she’s in therapy, but… I’m just not sure she’ll ever get much out of it. Dr. Fu is always saying you only get out what you’re willing to put in. And right now I don’t think she’s very motivated to participate.”

“You never know,” Adrien said, looking on the bright side. “Maybe her mom is really putting pressure on her. She seemed pretty upset at the school interview.”

“Maybe,” Marinette relented, only then realizing that they’d stopped next to the gangway of a boat moored on the side of the river in between quays. “Why are we stopping?”

“Well,” Adrien said, smiling. “You never did get to hear Juleka’s band live, so…” he waved toward the gangplank. He was rewarded by a grin brightened by the strings of lights strung all over the upper deck of the ship.

“This is The Liberty, captained by Juleka’s mom,” he said, then turned to the ship. “Hello, Liberty! Permission to come aboard?”

“Permission granted, young scallywag!” a very accented voice called back. Adrien chuckled at Marinette’s confused look, and led her across onto the deck. An older woman with a long braid and a bohemian look came out of the control room and stood smiling at them.

“Well hello Adrien, it’s good ta see you again! And who’s this lovely lass you’ve brought along?”

“Captain Anarka, this is my girlfriend, Marinette.”

Marinette grinned as she shook hands. “I never thought I’d set foot on a real pirate ship,” she joked. Juleka didn’t talk about it often, but he knew Marinette had heard some stories about her eccentric parent. Captain Anarka laughed and said. “Well, and who ever said you did  _ now _ ? Get away with ye- the band’s down below. You know the way, youngster,” she said, shooing them off.

“Captain  _ Anarka?” _ Marinette whispered, as Adrien ducked down a short stair.

“She changed her name after the divorce,” he whispered back, and then they emerged into a bright, eclectic, but comfortable living room area. There was a drumset in one corner, and instrument stands along the wall, holding guitars and several smaller percussion instruments. Microphones were set in stands- thankfully wireless- and boxy amps and speakers were positioned for easiest access. But thought the band area was neat and orderly, the rest of the space was not. There were boxes and clothes scattered here and there, pens, papers, and books littering every surface. The band members were sitting on a sectional on the other side of the room. Ivan, Mylene, Juleka, Rose, Luka and, to his surprise, Tikki and Plagg were there, too!

“Hi!” Marinette squealed as soon as she saw her best friend, and Tikki rose to meet her with a broad grin. All the others got up too, gathering around. Adrien smiled, watching everyone greet her. Luka sidled over and bumped his arm, giving him a thumb’s up when Adrien turned to him.

“So that’s the fabled Marinette, huh?” he asked quietly.

“Yeah,” Adrien said, fully aware that his expression was dreamy.

“Well, if she’s half as amazing as Kagami said, you’re a lucky man, Adrien,” Luka said. “And I think she is, or your heartsong wouldn’t sound so happy right now.” 

Adrien blinked as he registered Kagami’s name. He looked quickly at Luka, who merely winked at him and moved toward the others, letting his sister introduce him.

It turned out that Plagg had auditioned to be a co-singer for the band, and everyone had agreed he would fit into their dynamic surprisingly well. His mellow and rich voice balanced Rose’s higher, shriller style and lent a new flair to many of their old songs.

“It’s kinda like remixing everything without taking the trouble to remix it,” Ivan joked. 

They played a few of their old songs for Marinette, with Plagg leaning in on the vocals, and Adrien found himself enjoying the different flair he added to the familiar tunes. Marinette cuddled with Tikki about as much as she did with Adrien, whispering secrets to her and giggling, but he didn’t mind. He enjoyed both introducing her to the full band experience and watching her be happy with her friend.

When they got done with their small set, they fell into conversation about their future plans and how everything was going to shake out regarding the investigation into the school- there had already been indictments and charges brought, but it was all kept very quiet with few specifics released to the news- and speculation on why exactly Lila’s attempted online sabotage had petered out before it really got going.

“I think it has something to do with Claudette,” Marinette mused.

“Oh, it definitely did,” Tikki said. Both Adrien and Marinette looked at her.

“She started talking to Robere again,” Tikki said in answer to their questioning looks. Marinette’s face went neutral at that name, and Adrien felt his protective instincts rising again, but Tikki patted her shoulder. “Relax, girl. I know he hurt you a few years ago, and yeah, that was a dick thing to do, but…” she shrugged. “He changed. Granted, it took Lila ruining his reputation on purpose for him to grow a brain cell, but he  _ did _ change. He’s the one who found that video about our assault.”

Marinette’s eyes widened. Apparently she was surprised to hear Tikki talking about it so calmly. But Adrien looked to Plagg and saw him and Tikki share a look- the kind of look he wanted to share with someone someday- hopefully Marinette, if she could put up with him that long. He knew that they’d found a rock in each other, and it was always easier to be honest about hard things when you knew someone was right there beside you. He made a mental note to try and be friends with Plagg. Maybe he could learn a few things.

“Anyway,” Tikki went on. “Robere asked Claudette to basically be our inside woman, and she agreed. But it turned out she didn’t even need to do that much. Most of Lila’s court were sent all over the city and didn’t go to the same schools this semester. Honestly, the way they started questioning everything is why I still think Lila had formed some kind of cult of personality. Once they were all away from it, and from her, they started thinking things through rationally. A lot of them were upset that they’d believed so many of her lies. So none of them were really willing to back up her claims when it came down to it. But Claudette was the one to point out to them that if Lila had lied about all her celebrity friends and wonderful experiences, then she probably lied about you and me, too.” Tikki shrugged. “I have gotten a few apologies, but most of them have just gone silent.”

“Do you think any of them are going to testify against Lila if it comes to that?”

“I’m sure a lot of them would.”

“I agree,” Plagg put in. “Most of them are feeling betrayed and ashamed right now. Guess which emotion they would choose to embrace if given the choice?”

All of them nodded at that. 

Adrien realized how late it was getting and got Marinette’s attention by taking her hand and giving it a soft squeeze. His heart rate had calmed down a lot under the influence of friends and good music, but when she turned to look at him his breath caught all over again. She still looked so beautiful, even with the evident signs of tiredness. Again, his protective instincts rose up and he smiled.

“I think it’s time to go, Princess. Wouldn’t want you to turn into a pumpkin.” He winked.

Marinette snorted, and Adrien caught Rose and Juleka exchanging whispers and giggles out of the corner of his eye.

“Very well, Fairy Godmother, but do I still  _ have _ a coach, or has it turned into a pumpkin, too?” Marinette quipped, and Adrien’s smile broadened to a grin.

“Nope! No pumpkin coaches for my princess,” he said. “Too unreliable. I only use the finest, organic…” he sought for a suitably funny vegetable, but his mind was coming up blank. Marinette’s shining eyes weren’t helping, either. All of a sudden the only thing he could think of was how much he wanted to kiss her again. “Um…”

Tikki laughed at them. “Oh just go! Honestly, I don’t know how Alya and Nino put up with you two.”

Blushing, they got up and said their goodbyes. On the top deck, Captain Anarka was perched on the roof of the control room, swathed in blankets, with a spyglass pointed toward the heavens. She merely waved at them when they called their goodbyes to her.

Adrien had arranged for Gorilla to pick them up in front of the restaurant. Even if the date was over, he wanted a few more minutes alone with Marinette. He sighed, watching how the play of light and dark highlighted her features as they walked along.

“I had a really good time, Marinette. I hope you did, too.”

She smiled and looked at him shyly. “I did. I really did, Adrien, thank you. Especially for the last part. The rest was wonderful, but… it was nice to kind of unwind from it all with friends.”

“Yeah, I liked that, too.” He took a breath, glancing behind them. There was no one in sight, but increased sound from the Liberty indicated that others wouldn’t be far behind them. “Can I kiss you?” he asked. There was something about that night that made him want one more memory with her before dropping her off at the bakery.

“Of course,” she said, immediately stepping close. And as he leaned in, he thought to himself that, just as he had predicted, it really had been the best night of his life.

\----

Marinette willingly stepped closer to Adrien, conscious that she’d just had the best night of her life. The least she could do- honestly, what she wanted to do more than anything- was to kiss him once more. The memory of that slow, soft kiss in the locker room was more than enough to keep her warm in the cold.

As he leaned in and she tilted her head to meet him, she wondered at herself. Here she was, less than a year after hitting her lowest point… and it felt like she was floating on air, she was so happy. She knew they were young, she knew the first relationship usually didn’t last, but she also knew that right at this moment, none of that mattered. And whatever would happen in the future, she would always be grateful life had thrown them together.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> There! The Fluffy End! I hope it was enough. I couldn't quite figure out a way to add Lila's perspective without heading into angst territory, but I hope Tikki's mention of the reactions of her former fan-club, and Adrien's mention of the coming lawsuit were enough.
> 
> There WILL be trigger warnings at the beginning of the next chapter! So if you choose to continue, well... you've been warned.


	41. Beginning of the Angsty End

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Adrien and Marinette get taken by surprise. Trigger warnings apply.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Trigger Warning!  
> This chapter contains physical assault and serious injuries. PLEASE don't read if these things bother you.

Adrien was still leaning down when movement caught his eye. He looked over Marinette’s head, alarm shrilling through him, but he had no time to react. Someone barreled straight into Marinette, slamming her into him. Her forehead met his teeth and he stumbled further back, off-balance and forgetting how close he was to the edge. His foot slipped off into thin air and then he was falling. He tried to catch himself, but instead his hand only bounced off without grabbing hold of the concrete. The fall was longer than he wanted and shorter than he expected. Between his disorientation and the short distance he had no time to curl himself up the way he’d been taught in long ago gymnastics classes.

He hit the stone of the quay hard, a sharp pain radiating down his right arm. He lay there for a moment, dimly realizing what had just happened, but too stunned to do anything about it. By the time he’d gathered himself enough to try and sit up, he also registered the footsteps of someone hurrying over. He cradled his right arm, worried that it was broken.

“Oh dear, I saw what happened. Are you okay?” someone asked. He couldn’t quite place the voice.

“I… I think my arm might be broken,” he said between pants, and tasting blood at the same time. He must have cut his lip when Marinette’s head hit him. But that was minor. The pain in his arm wasn’t fading, it was pulsing, moving up from his forearm into his upper arm. And now he started worrying about Marinette. Whoever had slammed into them both might have hurt her, too.

“Here, let me see,” the voice said, and without thinking, Adrien let them take his right arm.

“Oh Adrien. I thought you were smarter than that.” 

The voice changed, sending chills down his spine. He had just a moment to register where he’d heard that exact tone before the person- Lila, it had to be Lila- twisted his arm. 

He cried out, clawing at her hands with his good one. He could feel the break now, a sharp spike of pain that made him sick.

“S-stop!”

“No, I don’t think I will,” Lila said thoughtfully, increasing the torque a little more. “This is a nice suit jacket, by the way. It’d be a shame if they had to cut it all up at the hospital… don’t you think?” 

“Please... let go…”

Adrien groaned and panted as she jerked him off-balance again. It was hard to concentrate on what she was saying, but the words eventually broke through, making him sick all over again.

“You know, you were always good looking, but a little too independent- at least in real life. But now, panting and begging at my feet? I don’t think you’ve ever looked better.”

The surprised pleasure in her tone had him choking down bile. 

“So no, I don’t think I’ll let go. Not just yet. Your father is suing me. ME!” Lila hissed. “And mother won’t listen. She won’t believe me no matter what I say. She’s going to send me back to Italy to some therapy school to make sure I get ‘treatment’ for my ‘condition.’” 

He could hear her loathing for that plan, but he couldn’t respond other than to try and control the pain through breathing. 

“So here’s what’s going to happen. I’m going to get you up to the street, and you’re going to tell everyone I helped you tonight- saved your life in fact! And  _ then _ you are going to convince your idiot father to drop the lawsuit. And once  _ everyone _ knows how I saved your life, no one will doubt me again. Not even mother. And if you don’t? I will push you into the river and with the cold  _ and _ a broken arm… I don’t think your chances would be very good. After all, there’s no point pursuing a lawsuit when the plaintiff is dead, right? So what’s it going to be?”

Lila jerked his arm again and Adrien, clutching one of her arms with his left to relieve the pressure, tried again not to vomit. The pain was intolerable, and she just kept twisting. He had to do something, say something,  _ anything _ to get her to stop.

“Please,” he gasped, shaking and sobbing. “I… I can’t…”

“ _ Focus _ , Adrien,” Lila spat. “Marinette’s probably dead by now, but you can still save yourself. Do we have a deal? Or do I push you into the river right now and let you drown?”

As much pain as he was in, Marinette’s name on Lila’s lips cut through it like a knife. “W-what? Mar-inette?” He looked up at her, dread mixing with the pain in really unpleasant ways. Lila was backlit by all the lights up above, but he could imagine her triumphant smile just from her tone of voice. 

“I met an old friend in group therapy,” she said brightly. “She’s obsessed with me, so it didn’t take much convincing for her to agree to attack Marinette. And you made it so easy tonight… I bet you didn’t even notice the photographer who was tailing you from one place to another, you were so sickeningly wrapped up in her… and then you took so long on that stupid boat that I thought we’d have to scrap the plan and wait for another night. Fortunately, as I was trying to convince her to stay for a few more minutes, you finally left. So really, you have only yourself to blame for this!”

It took a few moments for the implications of that to make their way through his pain-fogged mind, and this time Adrien really did vomit. All over Lila’s legs and feet. He probably would have felt proud of that if he’d been able to focus on anything but the thought of Marinette, taken by surprise and helpless against someone twisted by Lila’s lies. He was overwhelmed by pain and fear, scared for himself and for Marinette. Lila said something else, her tone sharp, but he was beyond caring. Or at least, he thought he was- but that was before she brought his already fractured arm down on her knee. 

Adrien  _ felt _ the bone snap, but he couldn’t even scream then because the pain stole all his breath. He thought he heard shouts and more people running then, as well as Lila’s voice again, but darkness rose up all around him and he gratefully fell into it.

\----

A solid weight hit Marinette’s back just before Adrien kissed her, slamming her into him and throwing them both off balance. Her forehead met his teeth with a sharp pain, and he stumbled back with a short cry. Right off the edge. She probably would have followed, but whoever had slammed into her pulled her back. 

Panic warred with determination for a hot minute, but then Marinette shoved back against whoever was holding onto her arms, planting her sharp little elbow where it would do the most good. A surprised grunt and a weakening of the hold on her let her pull away and whirl. But as soon as Marinette saw who it was, she broke and ran toward the street, wishing she wasn’t wearing heels. 

Suzanna was fast, though, and caught her legs in a flying tackle. Marinette went down, but remembered to protect her face and head. She felt Suzanna trying either to pull her backwards or climb up her body, so she kicked out with both feet, earning an enraged yell as her foot connected with something.

“Damn it! You never used to fight back!” Suzanna growled. Marinette wriggled and struggled, curling up to get the leverage she needed to get back to her feet. But Suzanna was too close. As soon as Marinette got to her feet, Suzanna grabbed a fistful of hair. She yanked Marinette off balance and landed a punch. 

Dazed, Marinette barely saw the next punch coming in time to block it, but block it she did. She could feel the old panic and fear trying to gain control over her, but she tried to think of Kagami and Alix… all the time and effort they put into teaching her how to fight back. Besides, Adrien had fallen and was probably injured… he needed her help. She couldn’t help him if Suzanna was punching her, could she?

Marinette latched onto the arm that had hold of her hair and used it to stabilize herself while she tried to kick out at her attacker. She blocked another punch and tried to land one of her own, but Suzanna caught her fist and, with a cruel grin, twisted it until Marinette had to turn her whole body to keep her from breaking it. That put her off-balance enough that it was easy for Suzanna to throw her down on the ground.

Again Marinette tried to scramble up, but Suzanna had all the advantage. She straddled her, bouncing on her chest twice, knocking out most of her air, and as Marinette tried to recover, Suzanna locked her hands around her throat and squeezed. 

Panic immediately set in, the need for air overriding everything else. Blood pounded in her ears, and all Marinette could think of was breaking Suzanna’s grip. She tried to think past it, her hands scrabbling for Suzanna’s face. When that proved out of reach, she dug her fingers and nails into the skin of Suzanna’s hands and wrists as hard as she could.

Suzanna shrieked and let go with one hand, giving enough leeway that Marinette could get a little air. Her brain cleared a little, the panic subsiding, but it wasn’t enough. She continued to gasp little bits of air, but it turned out that Suzanna had only let go so she could start punching again. Next to the burning need to breathe, the dull pounding wasn’t even on Marinette’s radar, though each hit seemed to reset her thought process. She bucked and twisted, trying to shove Suzanna off, but the girl stubbornly held on, breathing threats.

“You think you’re better than her, don’t you? I’ll teach you… You’re nothing. And you deserve nothing. You should  _ be _ nothing!”

Marinette’s vision was going black around the edges. She couldn’t get enough air, and she was getting weaker. She reached for Suzanna’s head, but it seemed so far away and she had no strength. Her clawed fingers met something soft and she swiped at it, scratching as deeply as she could.

Suzanna screamed again and slammed her head into the ground, once, then twice. Marinette couldn’t think anymore and stopped struggling, a part of her dimly hoping she could hold out until Suzanna had gotten it out of her system.

\----

Captain Anarka Couffaine was still stargazing- or trying to- when she heard a sharp cry from not too far away, followed by a panicked shout. She turned toward the noise and squinted into the night, the contrast between lights from the river and street and the darkness of the shadows making it hard to see anything. She’d reported- and stopped!- quite a few attempted crimes because of her habit of stargazing, so she knew a cry of fear when she heard one. It was practically the only time she and the police were in harmony. And it was hard to miss the movement when something large fell off the edge of the street level onto the quay. 

She jumped down off the roof of the control room and slipped inside, grabbing the radio and toggling the ship’s interior speaker.

“There’s a situation a-brewin,’ me hearties. Luka, take the lasses and go to the quay downriver. Someone’s fallen off. Ivan, take that nice boy Plagg and make sure no one’s up to no good on the street level, same direction. I’ll be on the horn to the police.”

There was a short pause before feet started stampeding up the stairs and across the deck behind her, some slowing down for the drawbridge, others not. Then she watched her children and their friends tearing off toward whatever was happening. Smiling grimly, she got on the radio.

\----

Luka’s long legs put him ahead of the pack, although Rose wasn’t far behind him. A couple of sharp, pain-filled cries from ahead made him lengthen his stride yet again. And yet, as much as he wanted to, he knew he couldn’t go charging down the quay steps in the dark. He slowed down, and Rose caught up to him as they both reached the head of the stairs. He could see two figures down below, but the lighting wasn’t good. All he could tell was that one was on the ground and the other had hold of their arm, as if trying to help them up. 

His heart calmed a little until he saw the kneeling figure clutch at the other and cry out again. Whatever was happening wasn’t good. He outdistanced Rose again, figuring he could at least chance taking the steps two at a time. By the time he reached the bottom of the stairs, the kneeling figure- mostly likely male- had slumped to the ground and the other- now Luka could tell it was a girl- was apparently trying to drag him over to the water. Luka slowed down in shock, but Rose surged past him.

“Get away from him!” Rose roared, as only a metal singer could.

She rushed past him and straight at the girl, who put her hands up defensively, a look of surprise and fear on her face that didn’t match the anger in her eyes. Now Luka was close enough to recognize that it was Adrien on the ground, obviously passed out, with an ominous bend in the middle of his right forearm. Luka fought a surge of anger and looked up just to make sure that Rose had the girl pinned. She did.

Luka knelt beside Adrien, checking him over rapidly and blessing the first aid courses his unconventional mother had insisted he and Juleka take every year. It was a bad break, but the sleeve wasn’t damp, so he had to hope the bone hadn’t broken through the skin. He didn’t have anything to cut through the cloth with, so he couldn’t make sure. He shrugged off his jacket, knowing anything was better than nothing and draped it over the younger boy before turning back to the girls. Rose still had Lila pinned against the wall.

Overhead he could hear another roar of rage, as well as some higher pitched yelling, but the echoes from the water and stones broke up the words. He hoped Adrien’s girlfriend was alright, although from the sound of it, someone had been trying to make sure she  _ wasn’t _ .

“I was only trying to help, I swear!” the girl whined. “He fell, and I saw it happen- I didn’t even know it was Adrien until I got closer! He was too close to the water, I  _ had _ to move him! I didn’t know he’d broken his arm!”

The girl’s claims rang as false as plastic bells, especially since her words didn’t match up with what Luka himself had seen her do, but Luka ignored that in favor of reigning in Rose.

“Hey,” he said, going closer. “Don’t hurt her, Rose.”

“I’m not letting her go,” the short girl actually snarled. “She threatened Adrien before, she’s actively bullied Marinette before, and I am  _ not _ going to give her a chance to run off before the police get here!”

“I’m not asking you to,” Luka said. “Just don’t hurt her.”

Luka gave the girl another once over, noting the signs of frustration in her posture, however hard she tried to mask it. And it wasn’t the frustration of a false accusation, either. He thought it over, wishing he had his guitar so he could try and figure out the cacophonous and surprisingly dark melodies of this girl. 

By this time, Juleka, Tikki, and Mylene had also arrived. Mylene, who had also taken courses in first aid, knelt by Adrien, putting a pad folded from someone else’s jacket under his head. Tikki stood between Adrien and the girl, glaring at her. 

“What did you do to him?” she demanded. “And what did you do to Marinette?”

“N-nothing!” Lila stammered, trying for an intimidated air, but Luka spied another flash of anger under the manufactured fear. “I swear, I-I didn’t do anything to her!”

“So who did?” Tikki asked. “I know you, Lila. You always get others to do your dirty work. And don’t think I didn’t notice! You said you didn’t do anything to  _ her, _ which means you did do something to Adrien! I swear- if anything-” Tikki had stalked closer and closer with every word until she was right up in the face of the other girl, still being held to the wall by Rose.

“Tikki, Rose,” Juleka said. “This is playing right into her hands. Let’s just wait for the police to get here, okay? We’ll let them handle it.”

\----

_ Ivan is a fast runner, _ Plagg thought, keeping pace with him. He knew stereotypes were rarely correct, but even so, watching someone as large as Ivan cover the ground like this was more surprising than it probably should have been.

Luka and Rose had been the first off the ship and were already passing the bridge, with the other girls not too far behind. Ivan had had to get out from behind his drums and Plagg had waited for him, thinking it was better to be a little late with backup, than to get there first and discover he needed backup and it wasn’t there yet.

But as they got closer, he put on another burst of speed, outpacing Ivan. Someone was pounding the crap out of someone else, and whoever it was needed to  _ stop. _ Whether the other person deserved it or not, Plagg didn’t know, and at the moment didn’t care. He tried to angle himself for the best tackling option and braced himself, hitting the attacker cleanly off the other person. They rolled together for a moment, the other- girl- cursing and yelling at him to let her go. 

“Plagg! It’s Marinette!” Ivan called, stopping by the downed figure, who had rolled to her side, coughing and choking. 

Plagg immediately tightened his grip on the other girl. He rolled, trying to get leverage, but she fought him like a wildcat, lunging back toward Marinette. Plagg had an idea and weakened his hold for a moment. She took advantage of it to surge up, which gave him the opening to wrap his arms around her waist and act as an anchor. He’d thought it would be enough to stop her, maybe break her out of her rage-fueled vendetta, but... apparently not. She started trying to drag him back over to Marinette and it took him longer than he liked to throw her back down to the ground.

“Ivan,” Plagg called, winded despite himself. “I can’t keep her off all by myself. Can you come and sit on her, please?”

Ivan was there in an instant and between them they wrestled the girl to the ground, Plagg not really surprised to recognize Suzanna once she was solidly pinned beneath Ivan. Plagg meanwhile, cautiously approached Marinette, who had curled herself into a little shaking ball. He lightly touched her shoulder, and she lashed out.

“Easy, easy,” he said. “It’s only me, Plagg. Remember? Come on, let me help you sit up.”

\----

All of a sudden the weight and pressure were gone. Marinette choked and coughed, rolling onto her side as her diaphragm and throat spasmed, not quite on the same page about how to get enough air. The dull ache on the left side of her face bloomed into a throbbing, roiling mass of pain. She tried to cradle it in her arm, but whimpered at the lightest touch to the abused flesh. Tears poured out and she couldn’t have stopped them if she tried. Still, she cried as silently as she could- usual for after an attack. No need to call extra attention to herself. She had to get herself back under control. Adrien needed help.

When someone touched her again, she flailed out, instantly sure it was going to be another attack.

“Easy, easy,” Plagg’s deep voice soothed, and Marinette relaxed, crying harder at how her body was betraying her. He helped her to sit up, but she stood on her own. Already she was swallowing the tears. After all, Suzanna wasn’t worth the effort. Her sobs eased with the thought, and she tried to wipe the last of the tears away without thinking, the casual brush on the bruised side of her face waking more pain. Yet, as terrible as it was, her body still remembered how often she’d been attacked and how necessary it was to return to normal as quickly as possible. She was still shaking, but only a little now.

“Adrien.” Her voice cracked as abused vocal chords didn’t want to cooperate. She swallowed, wincing. “We need to go help him. He fell.” 

“Captain Anarka sent Luka and the girls after him. She sent me and Ivan to help you. The police are on their way.” 

Plagg stepped to the side so that some light from a streetlamp fell on her face. He hissed in sympathy. “She really did a number on you the short time she had you down.”

“It felt like forever,” Marinette croaked out. “Where’s Adrien?” she asked again, hardly realizing she’d asked about him not two seconds ago.

“There was some shouting from down below, and I believe I heard Rose’s death scream, so whatever was going on with him is over. Just focus on yourself for now. Breathe.”

Marinette tried. She kept replaying those few seconds where Adrien stumbled back and slipped, cursing herself for not having reacted quicker, and reached out to save him. She kept seeing the mingled surprise and dawning realization on his face as he started to fall. She tried to get up and find Adrien several times, but Plagg and Ivan convinced her to sit and wait for the ambulances. Suzanna stayed quiet for the most part, only tossing out an insult or epithet sporadically. Eventually Tikki came up from the quay, and Marinette latched onto her, demanding to know what had happened to Adrien.

“He’s got a broken arm,” Tikki said in a soothing voice. That was a bad sign. Marinette knew that voice.

“What else?” she demanded, her abused voice breaking and squeaking unpredictably.

Tikki sighed, exchanging a glance with Plagg. “Lila was with him when we got there. And… he was passed out.”

Marinette felt sick. From what Tikki wasn’t saying, she thought that Adrien was unconscious because of something Lila did. She sank down onto the bench, shaking again.

“Guess he won’t want to date  _ you _ anymore after tonight, huh?” Suzanna snarked. Marinette flinched. Tikki, Plagg, and Ivan all told her to shut up simultaneously, but apparently she wasn’t finished. “He was too good for you, anyway. But then, practically anyone would be.”

Tikki started toward her, but Marinette… was done. Anger rose up in her, both at herself and at Suzanna and Lila and this whole situation, driving away any fear she might have had left. So she stopped Tikki with a hand on her arm and walked deliberately over to where Ivan was still making sure Suzanna stayed down.

She crouched down beside her and quietly (so her voice didn’t crack again) said, “Say what you want because your words mean nothing. All of this?” Marinette gestured to her face and neck. “This will heal. Adrien’s arm will heal. And we will still be together while you and Lila are stuck in separate detention centers. And by the way? Lila doesn’t care about you. She just used you because you like to get violent. So let me put this in a way you’ll understand.” 

With one swift motion, she punched Suzanna right in the nose. Suzanna reeled back in brief shock, before glaring at her. Marinette leaned closer. “I’m done being the victim.”

Then she got up and walked back to the bench, feeling shaky again, but… good. Tikki held her hand up for a high-five, which Marinette was happy to give her.

\----

The police and an ambulance arrived at the same time, so Marinette had the joy of trying to explain what had happened to an officer while being examined by an EMT. 

When the ambulance first arrived, Tikki had hurried over and told them about Adrien. They’d unloaded their stretcher and a backboard and followed her to the quay steps. Her eyes followed them anxiously until the EMT trying to examine her caught her attention again. Her face and neck still hurt an awful lot and she couldn’t seem to stop shivering- although, once the EMT put a blanket around her shoulders, she realized at least half of that was simply because she was cold.

She told the officer what happened as briefly as she could, anxious to get through it, but she kept asking question after question, and the EMT was asking questions, too… between them, they managed to keep her effectively distracted until the rest of the crew came back with Adrien strapped to the stretcher. Marinette got up and hurried over.

Adrien was still unconscious, but he still looked like he was in pain, and Marinette could tell it was a bad break. The sleeve of his suit coat had been cut off and his arm wrapped in some kind of splint. She asked if she could ride with him, and they said yes as long as she let them work without getting in the way. So Marinette climbed up and found a seat.

The ambulance smoothly slid into motion and Marinette had to brace herself against the sway without anything to hold on to. Everything was starting to catch up to her. She couldn’t look away from Adrien’s face. Even unconscious, he looked like he was in pain. Her own face and throat throbbed in time with her pulse, keeping her grounded in the worst possible way.

When they were nearly to the hospital, Adrien started twitching and moving his head on the pillow. The EMTs immediately started talking to him, telling him not to move, especially not his right arm. He stilled again, but his eyes slowly opened.

“Mari,” he whispered, meeting her one good eye. She tried to smile at him, but it hurt too much. 

And then they were there and they were unloading him and wheeling him away. One of the EMTs led her to an exam room and left her there. Fortunately, it didn’t take long for a nurse to come in and check her over. 

She, too, asked question after question. What were her parent’s names? Their phone number? Where did she live? Did she have any known allergies or preexisting conditions they should know about? Any history of this, that, or the other? Marinette tried to answer as best she could without moving her mouth much. 

The nurse put on some gloves and examined first her face and then her neck, asking some of the same questions the EMT had. When Marinette remembered, she told her about the knock on the head, too, and the nurse prodded a sore spot hidden beneath her hair. But that wasn’t nearly as bad as the rest of her face. The nurse gave her some painkillers that would also help reduce the inflammation, she said.

“I think your nose might be broken, but it could just be dislocated. We’ll do an x-ray to be sure, and they’ll want to take a scan of your throat to make sure nothing is permanently damaged there. The doctor will be in when your parents arrive, alright?” 

When Marinette simply nodded, the nurse patted her on the leg and left, shutting the door behind her. Marinette realized she’d forgotten to ask the nurse about Adrien. She eyed the chairs placed along one wall of the room, but decided to curl up on the exam table instead. Despite the pain of her bruises, she fell asleep quickly, giving way to exhaustion.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I tinkered a lot with this chapter, but in the end, I had to stop fiddling with it and just post the thing. It was hard to write, I know it'll be hard to read, but it's not the end-end.


	42. Chapter 42

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Aftermath of the attack.

Lila sat in the little room in the police station and idly kicked at the floor, arms crossed over her chest. Her mother had been called. Boy, was she looking forward to that conversation. She wasn’t handcuffed, but that was probably only because of her diplomatic immunity.

She’d done her best, she really had. She’d recruited Suzanna- that had been all too easy. When they’d first met again at group therapy Suzanna had avoided her, but it hadn’t taken Lila more than two days of appearing woebegone before Suzanna gruffly asked if she was okay. After that it hadn’t taken much manipulation at all to get her back into line. She’d been all too eager for a chance to attack Marinette. It had actually been a little chilling how willing she was to entertain the thought of killing her. 

But it was something Lila could use to her advantage, so she did. Adrien was a public figure- he had paparazzi that were actually semi-dedicated to him. She knew that sooner or later he would go on an actual date with Marinette, not just casual coffee dates. And when that happened, the paparazzi would notice- in the end, she didn’t even have to go to much effort to get an alert when he and Marinette showed up at the restaurant all dolled up. It had, admittedly, been infuriating to see how good Marinette looked in her dress, but Lila had pushed that down and gone to collect Suzanna. That had taken some doing, but in the end, Suzanna had done most of the work herself, taking an opportunity to climb the fence when no one was looking.

Then there had been the long, slow wait, while Adrien and Marinette enjoyed their evening. They’d almost been close enough to get them when they’d first walked along the river, and Lila had hoped it could have been over then- but then they went on that boat for some reason and spent forever there. Lila had had to endure quite a bit of squeezing and unnecessary cuddling in order to keep Suzanna there. She’d also had to make some pretty specific promises, which she hated doing. Still. When they’d finally emerged, Lila had thought it was all going to be worth it. She was going to get what she wanted from Adrien, and Marinette was going to get seriously hurt at the very least. It should have worked.

But then… it had all gone wrong. Adrien and Marinette were  _ supposed _ to be alone. Alone and defenseless, taken by surprise and quickly overwhelmed and overpowered. They  _ weren’t _ supposed to somehow summon people who were not only willing to help, but who also  _ knew _ Lila and what she’d done and threatened to do to the two before. Lila was no fool- she knew her Good Samaritan act wouldn’t hold up against that many witnesses, especially since Adrien hadn’t actually agreed to any of her demands, and she hadn’t been able to push him into the river. 

She hadn’t actually intended to threaten him with that- at the time it seemed like an opportunity to take advantage of. What she couldn’t understand was why he hadn’t folded completely the first time she twisted his arm. And how he held out after that, she had no clue. Lila had broken her own arm once, and she clearly remembered how painful it could be before it was set. Well, it hardly mattered now, she thought, looking around the small, bare room. She sniffed, keeping up her persona just in case. And also as a point of pride. If she didn’t break character, even when every evidence screamed that she was lying…

The door opened, and Lila gasped, looking up under her lashes with a calculated pout.  _ She _ was the wronged party here. She had only been trying to help. If she kept that firmly in mind, she might just convince someone with enough authority to call the others testimony into question. After all, they all had a vendetta against her, didn’t they? Hadn’t they basically gotten her expelled from school?

But the person who entered wasn’t likely to believe her, unfortunately. Lila barely kept her pout from morphing into a scowl. No, her mother wasn’t going to believe her- not anymore.

Mrs. Rossi sat down across the small table from Lila and sighed. Lila decided she could let her pout darken a bit and become petulant. After all, she wasn’t happy with her mother, and her mother knew it.

“I don’t know what you thought you were going to accomplish,” Mrs. Rossi said after a moment of pregnant silence. “You were already in serious trouble. We are facing a lawsuit because of your actions, and now you go and make it ten times worse? You attacked that boy! You made someone else attack that girl! From what they tell me, you were actually trying to kill them! Lila… what were you  _ thinking? _ ”

Lila shrugged. There was little point in keeping up the pretense around her mother, but she wasn’t going to be stupid and actually say anything. There were no doubt recorders in the room. When she refused to say anything, Mrs. Rossi sighed again.

“I am waiving your diplomatic immunity,” she said, in a kind of heavy voice.  _ That _ made Lila sit up and stare at her, feeling a small surge of panic for the first time since those interfering teens showed up on the quay before she could drag Adrien into the water.

“W-what?” she whispered. She’d known her mother wouldn’t,  _ didn’t _ believe her, but somehow she hadn’t expected this level of betrayal. She definitely didn’t want to be sent to a correctional school where she would be under constant scrutiny and forced to attend therapy sessions, but somehow it hadn’t really occurred to her that anything worse could happen, because she couldn’t be tried for crimes committed in another country after all. 

Her mother looked at her with tired eyes that suddenly seemed so much harder than anything Lila had seen from her before. 

“Lila, you had to know this was a possibility. I am an  _ ambassador. _ And  _ my daughter _ just planned an assault and tried to kill a famous French celebrity and his girlfriend. I can’t just send you back to Italy as I had planned. My credibility would be completely ruined. As it is, I may be recalled anyway, whatever I do. But at least I can show the people of Italy and France that I do not condone this type of behavior. You will be charged with these crimes, and it will most likely go to trial.” Mrs. Rossi shifted in her seat, sighing again. “I am still your mother, and I will hire good lawyers for you. But I don’t think it will make much difference. There is too much evidence against you.” 

She got up and went to the door. Lila sat there, stunned. Just before her mother opened the door, she burst into tears- real, this time.

“Y-you don’t l-love m-me!” Lila wailed. And from her perspective, it was true. People who loved her did what she wanted them to, like Suzanna.

“Of course I love you, Lila,” Mrs. Rossi said quietly, when Lila took a breath between loud sobbing. “But love doesn’t mean letting someone do anything they want. You need to learn that. And as I apparently failed to teach you this lesson, I will stand back and let someone else teach you.”

And with that, her mother opened the door and left. Lila stared after her, before bursting into real tears again.

\----

Adrien came back to awareness slowly, conscious of a deep, dull ache in his arm. He wished it would go away, shifting this way and that to try and ease it, but nothing helped. Finally, he sighed and opened his eyes.

To his surprise he wasn’t at home in his own bed. He was in what was clearly a hospital room.

“Adrien,” he heard his father say in a tone that he’d almost never heard before. It wasn’t the usual cool, almost impersonal tone he used from day to day. This was warmer, and obviously concerned.

“Dad?” he asked. “What-”

His mind felt fuzzy, his thoughts disconnected. But the fact that he was in a hospital bed, wearing a hospital gown meant that something unexpected had happened. He tried to do his usual move of rubbing the back of his neck, but… he looked down at the cast on his right forearm. It extended over his hand and above his elbow, keeping the arm bent at a right angle. 

And then everything came flooding back- the date, walking by the river, falling, and then… Lila. He swallowed convulsively, blinking back tears. He sniffed once or twice, trying not to let on how much the memories and the remembered pain were affecting him. His father, he knew, was not a fan of emotional outbursts. But, again to his surprise, Gabriel leaned forward to squeeze his left hand supportively.

“It’s alright son. You’ve been through a lot tonight, and if the pain is too much, there is no shame in asking for painkillers.” He waited, but Adrien shook his head. The pain wasn’t terrible, just there, reminding him of what had happened.

“Very well,” Gabriel said, and stood. “There is a police officer waiting to get your statement. I’ll go get her.”

Adrien was left alone, but it wasn’t for long, just long enough for more of the fog to clear out of his brain. The police officer was a middle-aged woman who smiled kindly at him.

“I’ve already taken statements from everyone else involved, I just need to hear it from your perspective,” she said, pulling out a small voice recorder.

Adrien looked away. He knew exactly what had happened, but… he was strangely reluctant to tell anyone what Lila had done, least of all with his father there. He wondered at that, until he realized- it was shame. He was ashamed at how helpless he’d been against her. He was supposed to be better than that, he was trained in fencing and karate... he should have been able to get away from her, or not let her get ahold of his arm in the first place, or in the worst case, he should have told her what she wanted to hear so she would let go. But he hadn’t. He hadn’t done any of those things. And all of a sudden he understood, in a way that he hadn’t before, why Marinette- or any other survivor- might not tell anyone about their abuse until it had gone on for far too long.

Adrien took a shaky breath- and told them what Lila had done. This part, at least, he could get right. As awful as the events he described were, it didn’t take very long to go through them. Adrien made sure to try and recount exactly what Lila had said to him, though his memories of it were fogged with pain, especially the part about throwing him in the river to drown. Gabriel sat, silent and unmoving through it, making Adrien more nervous, as the officer made a few physical notes. Would he be disappointed? Would he tell Adrien what he should have done to avoid the situation he now found himself in? But going through it like that- Adrien couldn’t think of anything he could have done differently, other than to use his brain and not let Lila get hold of his broken arm in the first place. 

When the officer finished, she smiled sympathetically at him. “Now that you’ve given me your statement, I can tell you that your story matches up better with what your friends say than the story the young lady told us.”

Adrien shuddered involuntarily. He could just imagine the way Lila had probably started crying and insisting that she’d only been trying to  _ help. _

“Just a few more things, Adrien,” the officer said. “You said she wanted you not only to tell everyone she’d saved your life and helped you, but also to get your father to stop a lawsuit against her. Can you tell me more about that? Why was your father bringing a lawsuit against a teenager?”

Adrien sighed and related the events which had led to Lila’s withdrawal from school. When he was done, his father spoke up.

“Given what Miss Rossi threatened my son with, and the fact the school was not allowed to adequately discipline her, I wanted to bring a civil suit against her. My son is a young man and no doubt foolish about many things, but I raised him, and I’ve known about his attachment to Miss Dupain-Cheng for some time, and I do not believe he would have…  _ indulged _ anything with Miss Rossi in the meantime. The general public, however, is usually more than willing to believe scandalous rumors about young men and women, especially those in the spotlight. I am a businessman as well as a father, and as Adrien is the current face of my brand, his image is important to me for more than personal reasons. I did not want her spreading further lies about him.” He paused before continuing. “Obviously, I will be wanting to press criminal charges against her for both planning and executing an attack on my son, and for making what would have been a relatively minor injury much worse. I will also be advising the Dupain-Chengs to do the same.”

The officer nodded to all this, making a few more notes. Then she flipped the small notebook shut and put it away in a pocket. “Good. Thank you for your cooperation. Someone will be in touch as the investigation progresses, probably later today. Have a good night.” She then glanced out at the brightening sky. “Well, day, I guess.” 

She left, and Adrien relaxed back into the pillow, closing his eyes. His arm was starting to hurt more, and he was thinking about asking for those painkillers, when his father spoke up again.

“If you are wondering if you could have done something differently to avoid all this,” Gabriel said, “don’t. I will be honest and say that I wish you had kept your bodyguard closer last night, but… It seems Miss Rossi has been planning this ever since she was withdrawn from school. I think you would have been attacked whenever you were vulnerable in the near future.”

That reminded Adrien of something he’d forgotten to ask. “How’s Marinette? Is she okay? Did anything happen to her?” He felt bad about not asking earlier, but he hadn’t really been given a chance to ask about anything since waking up.

Gabriel pursed his lips, which told Adrien the answer even before his father said it. “She… was also attacked, though less seriously than you.”

“Is she okay?” Adrien asked, almost whispering. His father had a tendency to downplay serious problems, and magnify small ones- something Adrien was well aware of. Again his father paused a little too long before answering.

“She has bruises, but nothing is broken.”

Adrien’s mind painted horrible pictures of what had happened. Bruises where? Inflicted how? “Can I see her? Is she here?”

“I believe her parents took her home after getting clearance from the doctors.” His father’s expression softened a little. “She’s probably sleeping, Adrien. As you should be, I might add. It’s been a long night.”

Adrien closed his eyes again, suddenly feeling drained. He knew his dad was probably right, but he still wanted to see her. What a horrible ending to the night. He wouldn’t be surprised if she never wanted to go out with him again. All of a sudden the pain in his arm felt much worse, and tears sprang to his eyes.

“C-can you call the nurse?” he asked, trying not to let his voice shake. “I think I’m going to need more painkillers before I can sleep.”

“... of course.” Gabriel left the room, giving Adrien the space he needed to regain control over himself. He looked around for his phone, and saw it on the bedside table. He managed to reach it and unlocked it. He had a whole bunch of new texts and a few missed calls, but nothing from Marinette. He took a breath and sent her a text. Texting was awkward with the cast, and flexing his fingers increased the ache in his arm, but he managed.

[Adrien] Hey. I just woke up a little bit ago. I know you’re probably sleeping, but please call me when you wake up. Or text. Whatever.

[Adrien] I just need to know you’re okay.

He paused before going ahead and adding,

[Adrien] I’m so sorry about all this.

When the nurse came in with a little cup of pills and some water, he took them and tried to find a comfortable position in the hospital bed. He could feel it when the pills took effect because the pain just… melted away. He also started to feel loopy and disconnected, so he closed his eyes and let himself drift into sleep.

\----

When Adrien woke again, it was lunchtime, which was perfect because he woke up starving. His father was gone, but the nurse told him that he could expect the Gorilla to bring him some fresh clothes to go home in that evening. Apparently the doctors wanted to take a few more x-rays before they released him.

Adrien ate his lunch awkwardly and took more painkillers, planning to spend the time until they kicked in answering his growing number of texts and voicemails. Most of them were from Nino and Alya, quite a few from Kitty Section members- including Plagg- and even two from Chloe. Still none from Marinette. He had a couple of Instagram notifications that he ignored for now.

He sighed. He’d really screwed up. That protective instinct of his might as well not exist for all the good it had done her last night. He responded to the last texts from Nino and Alya and shot a quick one to Chloe- who really only seemed to have texted him out of a feeling of obligation- but he was too depressed to do much more than that.

Suddenly there was a knock on the door. 

“Come in,” he called, not bothering to sit up or even look to see who it was. But when he heard Marinette’s quiet, “hey,” he sat up so fast he got a headrush.

“H-hey!” Adrien said, blushing for… reasons he couldn’t really identify at the moment. He hadn’t expected her, he was in a hospital gown instead of properly dressed, he’d been busy wallowing… but he was so  _ glad _ to see her… and then he took a good look at her. There were large white gauze bandages applied to the left side of her face and around her neck, but they didn’t cover everything. He could see purple-black bruising around her mouth and chin, and across her nose, the skin shiny with some kind of ointment. Her left eye looked awful, bloodshot with red puffy skin around it. She was wearing jeans and an old sweatshirt that could have belonged to her father at some point it was so big on her, and a baseball cap on her head. She was obviously feeling vulnerable, wanting to hide. Wordlessly, he held out his left hand and she came around to that side of the bed and sat down in the chair beside it.

“Marinette…” he breathed, swallowing hard and blinking back tears. She smiled with the right side of her mouth. 

“It’s not as bad as it looks,” she said, “not nearly as bad as a broken arm.” But she kept looking away, and bouncing her knees nervously. The silence stretched between them, uncomfortable and seemingly insurmountable.

“I’m so sorry!”

“I’m so sorry!”

They both burst out at the same time. Then they looked at each other and Adrien suddenly had to bite his lip to keep from grinning. Marinette snorted, and then they were both laughing. The tension broke as if it had never been. Adrien held out his good hand and Marinette took it.

“Seriously, though,” she said. “I  _ am _ sorry. It’s all my fault you have a broken arm.” She nodded to his cast and her expression fell again.

“Mari, what are you talking about?” Adrien asked. “Because if I remember correctly, you didn’t push me over that edge, and you definitely didn’t twist my arm and then snap it over your knee.”

Marinette gasped, horror written all over her face, and Adrien’s eyes widened. “I’m sorry! I shouldn’t have said that… at least… not like that,” he finished weakly. But it was too late, Marinette had covered her mouth with one hand while tears rolled down her cheeks, soaking into her bandages on the left side. This just wouldn’t do. Moving awkwardly, Adrien managed to let down the side rail of the hospital bed and then slid over, beckoning her to join him. She did, laying down on the blankets and he wrapped his arms around her as best he could.

“Now why are you sorry?” He asked softly. “There wasn’t anything you could have done. In fact, it might have been worse if you’d come after me, because Lila could have tried to use me against you, or you against me, and then either one of us could have promised her something that would have gotten her out of the trouble she’s in. It’s okay, really,” he said, stroking her hair to soothe her. “I’m fine, look at me! Just a broken arm. I’m even going home tonight, okay? I’m fine.”

“You’re not f-fine,” she insisted in that higher pitched voice that came with trying to talk while crying. “I c-can’t believe… god, she’s so awful… How could even Lila  _ do _ that?” She sobbed half the words and Adrien had to listen closely to understand her.

He sighed. “I think she thought she could save herself from the consequences of all her lying and threats if she convinced me to tell everyone she had helped me. She wanted me to get father to drop the lawsuit, too.” He didn’t mention the threat about leaving him to drown, or her casual reference to Marinette’s impending death. Marinette did  _ not _ need to know that part. Not right now at least.

“That’s the stupidest thing I ever heard,” Marinette said, beginning to calm down. “As if breaking your arm was the best way to get you or your father to do anything but press more charges.” She sniffed and moved away a little, wiping at her eyes. He didn’t miss the little grimace of pain she tried to hide.

“Well, what about you?” Adrien said, eyeing the damage to her face. He wanted to touch it, but didn’t want to hurt her anymore. “I’m sorry, but I just can’t believe that it’s not as bad as it looks.”

“At least nothing’s broken on me,” Marinette said, attempting a smile. “It’s all just bruises.”

“Pretty deep ones, I’d say,” Adrien insisted. “Come on, if it’s not that bad, then just tell me.”

Marinette looked down, then rolled onto her back so she wouldn’t have to look at him. “It was Suzanna. I don’t know if I mentioned her particularly when I told you all about my bullies, but… she was obsessed- is still obsessed, I guess- with Lila, and she wasn’t afraid to be violent. She’s the one who slammed into us, and… well, we fought. I tried to get away at first, but she was too close and she caught me. I did try to fight back,” she said, swallowing hard. “But, uh, she got me on the ground and started choking me. The face is from where she started punching me when I scratched  _ her _ face trying to get her to let go.” She took a breath, in through her nose and out through her mouth. Adrien tried blinking back his own tears, but it didn’t work. He didn’t interrupt, though. “Anyway, Plagg and Ivan got there pretty quickly and pulled her off me,” she actually chuckled a little. “Well, more like tackled her off me. Ivan ended up having to literally sit on her to keep her away from me.”

Adrien couldn’t say anything around the lump in his throat so he just shifted closer until he could put his head against hers. He knew, he just knew, that this Suzanna, whoever she was, had been trying to actually kill her. So he held her as tightly as he could and said nothing. If Marinette didn’t know she’d been that close to dying, he wasn’t going to be the one to tell her. Not right now. Later, when they’d both had time to heal and process, but not now. 

“I’m sorry,” he finally whispered. “I’m so sorry I wasn’t there to stop her.”

Marinette heaved a sigh. “If it’s not my fault that Lila hurt you- even though it’s because of me that she even knows you at all- then it’s not your fault that Suzanna hurt me.”

Adrien thought that over. It didn’t sound quite right to him for some reason. His thoughts were starting to drift, and he guessed the painkillers were taking effect. His sadness was fading, along with the pain. He was just glad to be cuddling her. Then it hit him.

“Aha!” he said, as if he’d discovered something huge like density. “It’s not your fault Lila hurt me, because…,” he paused, groping after the point he was trying to make. “She was already hurting me before she even knew I liked you.” Marinette looked at him quizzically. “She pretended I was her boyfriend,” he explained. He didn’t know why she looked so skeptical- it made perfect sense to him. “She would have gotten mad at whoever I picked to actually date, and got mad at me, too, and probably would have tried something like this even if it wasn’t you,” he said, triumphantly booping her nose.

Marinette shook her head at him, but smiled, making him grin even bigger. He loved making her smile. He snuggled into the crook of her neck, grinning like an idiot, but not caring in the least. They lay like that for a while, Adrien firmly snuggled into her side. After a few minutes, she giggled and he huffed a laugh, too. The first wave of euphoria was ebbing, pulling him toward sleep.

“Sorry,” he drawled. “These painkillers make me silly for a while before they knock me out.”

“Are you going to sleep?” Marinette asked. Adrien nodded.

“I should go, then,” Marinette said, but Adrien tightened his hold.

“Nooooo stay, Princess...”

She giggled again. “I’ll come back,” she offered.

“But I won’t be here,” he protested. “I’ll be at home.”

“So I’ll come visit you at your house.”

“Oh. Okay,” he said. Somehow he’d missed that that was an option. He could feel himself sliding further toward unconsciousness and tried to fight it, shaking his head a little.

“Okay, I’m going to go,” she said after a minute, giving him a little squeeze. Adrien squeezed back. He couldn’t keep his eyes open anymore, but he didn’t want her to feel like he wasn’t paying attention. She was always worth paying attention to.

“ ‘kay. Love you,” he murmured, sighing. When Marinette didn’t say anything he wondered if she’d already left and he was just dreaming that he was still holding her. “Mari?” he whispered.

He felt warm lips on his forehead and smiled, barely registering when Marinette finally slid out of his arms.


	43. The Actual, Official End

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Everything gets wrapped up nice and neatly.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I know I said a couple more chapters, but... I decided that I didn't really want to drag out the trial and everything. There's really no need for that- we all know Lila and Suzanna are going away for a long time. And special thanks to LadyKae for beta-ing this.
> 
> So enjoy this Last, Last Chapter. I hope it's satisfying.

Suzanna sat and glared at her therapist. When she’d first been brought here, she’d known instinctively that she had to keep faith with Lila. She knew they would try to break her, try to convince her that her actions had been too extreme, that she should be sorry for what she did no matter who it was done to, or what they deserved. But they didn’t understand. No one understood. Lila… she was perfect. She was an angel. Suzanna knew she didn’t really deserve Lila’s affections… but she could hope. She could serve and hope that one day Lila would notice her. And in the meantime, she had to remain faithful. 

Over the weeks, when she didn’t see any of the others, not even Lila, she kept faith, though they tried to wear her down, get her to confess not just to the attack on Tikki and Plagg, but to other things as well. She knew her visitors were being restricted to family, and every time her parents came she got so angry at their refusal to understand her actions that the staff eventually asked them not to come anymore. Her older brother was more tolerable. He didn’t talk about why she was there. He didn’t look at her with contempt and disappointment. He talked about her favorite bands, and how he was planning to backpack around Europe, and told her how Gram was doing. He didn’t mention their parents. He told her that when she was released he’d take her to a concert.

After a couple of weeks, they let some of her friends visit, but they had to be vetted. Suzanna waited for Lila’s name to appear on that list, but it never did, though some of the others in the old group did. She always asked them how Lila was doing, but strangely, they didn’t seem to want to talk about her. Not like they always had before. They seemed worried about her continued fixation. She started to wonder if perhaps it was because… well, maybe she  _ had _ been a little too… and after all, Lila had seemed to hesitate when Suzanna mentioned the plan… and yet there had been those times when she seemed to actually encourage violence. It was a puzzle. One that Suzanna didn’t want to admit that she was scared to solve.

Her favorite therapist never pushed her to talk or to answer questions. She was always patient, even when Suzanna spent the whole hour not saying anything. She would present something for Suzanna to think about, and then… let her think about it. Most of the time it wasn’t  _ pleasant _ . It wasn’t  _ nice _ to think that… maybe she’d been a little extreme. It wasn’t nice to think that  _ maybe _ she had misinterpreted Lila’s feelings towards her. It wasn’t nice to contemplate  _ why _ it was that her parents looked at her with disappointment verging on contempt. But this therapist let her think about it instead of pressing her to come to conclusions, or insisting that she come to the “right” conclusions.

Today, a few days after their failed attack, Suzanna wasn’t willing to think at all. If she thought about it, she would have to think about why Lila wanted her help... after ignoring her for almost two months. She would have to think about why Lila wanted her to go after  _ Marinette _ while  _ she _ went after Adrien. She would have to think about how literally everyone- even the people she hated- kept telling her that she was being used.

Of course, it was a little difficult not to think when her favorite therapist sat across from her, playing back Lila’s testimony, and pausing it now and then to ask if someone who cared for her would say those things. Again, she wasn’t pushing. She wasn’t demanding answers that Suzanna wasn’t willing to give. She was simply asking the question. Again, she pressed play and Suzanna hid a cringe as Lila’s once-lovely voice whined, repeating for the n-th time, 

_ “I told her it was a bad idea, but she told me she could get my Adrien back, and [sniff] and I knew Marinette didn’t really like him at all, she was just using him. I never expected it to be so violent! When Adrien got pushed off like that, of course I immediately hurried down to help him! I only wanted to help! I didn’t know she was going to attack Marinette like that!” _

Suzanna crossed her arms over her chest and hunched down, turning her smouldering gaze from her therapist to the floor. No, Suzanna didn’t want to think about that. But it seemed she wasn’t going to be given the choice.

\----

Four days after the attack, Adrien sat at dinner with his father eating slowly but fairly neatly with his left hand. The right, in it’s cast, still resided in the sling the doctors warned him to wear for at least two weeks when he was upright. He treated it as an exercise in conscious body control, much like switching hands while fencing would be. It was something to practice, to sharpen his mind so he could meet unexpected situations without flailing around in panic. It was also annoying, but he tried to ignore that as much as possible.

“Adrien,” his father said from the head of the table. “I wanted to talk to you about something.”

“Of course, father,” Adrien said, deeming the formal address more appropriate to the setting and tone.

“How attached are you to Miss Dupain-Cheng now that you have been seeing her romantically for a few weeks?”

Adrien tried not to visibly bristle, but still tensed. Marinette had gone back to school that day, after staying home the first two days of the school week since the attack. His father’s PR manager had held a press conference about the attack on Monday, it was now Wednesday, and while the story was no longer front page news, most of the tabloids and gossip sites were still getting quite a bit of traffic over it. Apparently the photographer who had taken the pictures that alerted Lila during their date had stuck around long enough to get some pictures of the attack itself. Those had gone public the same night, and reactions and comments were both… mixed. Most people expressed horror and sympathy over the attack itself, but there were quite a lot of people who seemed to think it was either inevitable that he and Marinette would break up over this, or that they  _ should. _

“What do you mean?” Adrien asked carefully.

“I believe my question was sufficiently straightforward, Adrien. Stop prevaricating.”

Adrien stifled a sigh, and made an effort to analyze his feelings. Not that he wasn’t still in love with Marinette, but he knew Gabriel would expect him to be able to quantify his feelings. He still almost instinctively thought Marinette was attractive, but at a deeper level than just the physical- the bruises were ugly, but they couldn’t change her personality, or her creativity. Even the stubbornness that had her trying to go back to school on Monday was admirable. It would have been too soon for a lot of reasons, but Adrien couldn’t help being proud of her for wanting to show everyone how intimidated she  _ wasn’t. _ But it would have ended up hurting her more than she thought, and fortunately he, her parents, and Tikki had convinced her to wait a few days until it was no longer front-page news. Her bruises were still obvious, but at least they’d begun to fade a little in that time, and hopefully people knew enough about the attack by now not to mob her about it.

That said, his first impulse every time he thought of her was still to hold and protect. And kiss. Lots of kissing. And in the far reaches of his mind he could imagine just how good it might feel to do a bit of caressing, too. He could feel the dopey smile slowly taking over his face and didn’t try to suppress it.

“I still think she’s wonderful, father. I still want to be with her, and... I can’t imagine anyone I’d want to be with more.”

“The attack hasn’t changed that at all?”

“No.”

Gabriel nodded, pursing his lips a little. Adrien decided to press a little.

“May I ask why you are asking?”

“If that’s the way you truly feel Adrien, there’s no need for you to concern yourself with it. I merely wished to confirm that your feelings have not changed appreciably.”

“Can I assume you’re referring to some of the comments people have been making since the attack? I believe some people are saying that I should dump her, or she should give me up because of the potential danger to me.”

Gabriel sighed in that long-suffering way that Adrien had grown familiar with since his mother’s death. “You will find as you grow older Adrien that the world is mostly populated by idiots. Well-meaning idiots, but idiots nonetheless. I can’t deny that the attack could have made a good excuse for you to stop seeing her if your sentiments had changed, but as it is, I see no reason for either of you to feel that you are in more danger, and no reason not to continue the relationship. Indeed, I’ve been impressed with the way Miss Dupain-Cheng has handled herself thus far.”

Adrien blinked, surprised- not at the compliment itself, but that he had voiced it at all. His father wiped his mouth with a napkin, then continued.

“I’ve had people doing independent investigation, and it seems that the schoolmates Miss Rossi previously had wrapped around her finger are no longer so devoted to her. In fact, most of them are displaying anger and betrayal at  _ her _ actions, rather than yours. They think it unlikely for another attack to come from that direction. And given the reaction Miss Rossi’s attack has garnered from the public, the experts I consulted think it’s equally unlikely that any of your other fans would go to similar lengths, even if they had previously been inclined to do so, given the chance.” Gabriel smiled thinly. “This might even give you and Marinette some breathing space. I think you won’t be accosted by fans in large groups for at least the time it takes for your arm to heal.”

Adrien smiled at that. “Thank you, sir. I was a little worried about some of the other students Lila had or could have corrupted.”

“Of course, Adrien.”

They returned to eating in silence, but Adrien basked in the glow of his father’s approval and support. He couldn’t wait to pass the good news on to Marinette.

\----

The trial happened a lot faster than Marinette expected. She’d heard so many stories about things dragging on, sometimes for years, as lawyers jockeyed and asked for more time again and again, but with this case… it was a bare month before the first hearing. She suspected the rapidity had something to do with Gabriel’s wealth and connections, but even though that left a slightly bitter taste in her mouth, she found she couldn’t complain. When she brought it up to Adrien, he got a thoughtful look and later told her he would ask his father to sponsor a top lawyer to take on a pro bono case two or three times a year. That made her feel a little better.

The trial itself was, well, a trial. She and Adrien both ended up having to take the stand, because Lila and her lawyers, to Marinette’s incredulous surprise, stuck to the script of ‘ex-girlfriend, right place, wrong time, coerced into helping the vicious and violent friend.’ They didn’t seem to care that her story was contradictory in and of itself. Once Marinette and Adrien’s lawyers had their chance to question Lila, her story broke down bit by bit- but all she would do when challenged was to cry crocodile tears. By the time she left the stand, even the judge looked fed-up with her antics.

Suzanna had a separate trial, though both of them were called as witnesses during each other’s trials. Suzanna seemed to have finally gotten it through her head that Lila didn’t and wouldn’t ever care for her, and the glares she sent her former friend while she detailed just what Lila had said and promised in order to persuade her made Marinette shiver. She had no doubt whatsoever that Suzanna now had a vendetta against Lila instead of Marinette. She also noted that Suzanna never once looked at  _ her, _ and avoided looking at Adrien, too. When questioned about the attack, she even had the grace to look ashamed, though there was more than enough anger there as well.

In the end, Lila’s sentence included prison time with mandatory psychiatric care, to be served in juvenile detention until she was an adult, when she would be transferred to a women’s prison for the rest of her term. Lila glared daggers at both Marinette and Adrien during the sentencing. Mrs. Rossi seemed resigned. She had been demoted within the Italian embassy, but she still had a job there.

Suzanna got a slightly lighter prison sentence than Lila, again with mandatory psychiatric care, and Marinette thought the only reason her sentence was shorter was because she showed some remorse for her actions. Not much, but some. Marinette noticed that her parents cried during the sentencing, but a tall boy who seemed to be her brother stood silently, and when Suzanna turned to look at her family, it was his eyes she met, and they shared a small smile. The interaction, as small as it was, gave Marinette some hope for the girl.

After the trial ended, there was a big celebratory meal at a fancy restaurant, and everyone who had been even slightly involved was invited. That… got a bit awkward when Claudette and Robere, as well as some of the other ex-bullies, showed up. 

Adrien had once again used his money for good by renting a private room for their group, and the several waiters and waitresses assigned to them had just departed with their drink orders when there was a knock on one of the elegantly decorated sliding panels that allowed for this section of the restaurant to be closed off. 

Sabine was the one who slid the door open. Her sunny expression froze and fell into polite neutrality when she saw who it was. Claudette and Robere stood there, with a few other teenagers Sabine didn’t recognize right away behind them. Most of them looked like puppies who had been punished and were hoping for reconciliation. Sabine reminded herself that these were not puppies who had chewed up some shoes. These were teenagers who had systematically tormented her daughter to the point of suicide, all on nothing more than the word of a sadistic, manipulative bully. 

“Yes?” she said coldly, not moving away.

Claudette swallowed and clutched at her boyfriend’s hand. “Mrs. Cheng, I… I know I’m- we’re- not welcome, but I- we- just wanted to say ‘congratulations.’ On the outcome of the trial.” She bit her lip and looked down before adding, “Lila is a real piece of work, and I’m glad that she’s not free to manipulate people anymore. And I’m really very sorry for my part in all this. I… I shouldn’t have been so quick to believe her. I know it doesn’t fix anything, but… we’re sorry.”

Sabine’s manner thawed a little. “Thank you for that,” she said with a slight bow. “But I’m not the one you should be apologizing to.” She turned and called for Marinette.

Marinette quickly appeared, and just like her mother, her expression froze into polite neutrality when she saw who it was. For a moment she felt all the old panic surging up… but then Adrien was there, draping a recently healed arm protectively around her shoulders, and she could breathe again.

“Hello, Claudette,” she managed. “Robere.”

Claudette repeated what she’d told Sabine, and Marinette nodded, her expression warming a little. “And the rest of you?” she asked, looking past Claudette. “Why are you here?”

“We came to apologize, too.” One said, stepping forward. “It wasn’t right, what we did, and we wanted you to know that we know that now. We also wanted you to know that we’re in therapy, trying to figure out how to not be colossal jerks in the future.”

Marinette actually cracked a smile at that. “Good.” Adrien tightened his grip on her shoulders slightly, subtly pulling her away. “Ok, well… thanks for coming and telling me, I guess.”

Claudette and Robere shared a look before he stepped forward. “Look, um… I just wanted to personally apologize for what I did in college. That… that was cruel, and I never should have gone along with it. For the record, I never really saw anything that funny about it, but at the time…”

Marinette’s expression had fallen again. “You didn’t think you could say no,” she stated, finishing his sentence.

Robere shrugged and nodded. “I’m sorry.”

“You can always say no,” Marinette said softly. “That’s the thing to take away.”

“Wait, what exactly was it you did?” Adrien asked suddenly. Marinette clutched at the hand over her shoulder, trying to tell him to back off. But Robere looked away, clearly ashamed. 

“I, uh… I made Marinette think I liked her. I even asked her on a date, and then… stood her up.” He sighed. “Then the next day I pretended that I had no idea what she was talking about when she confronted me.”

Marinette could tell from Adrien’s sudden tension and measured breathing that he was furious. She turned to him. She didn’t want him to be angry about something so far in her past. And she’d already told him about that anyway.

“It was years ago. And I have you, now,” she said earnestly. “It doesn’t matter.”

She could see the anger slowly fade from his eyes. Instead of saying anything, he leaned down and kissed her. “He never deserved you,” he said, simply. Marinette gave him a little smile and said, “I know.”

When Sabine called them back to their seats, their unexpected visitors had gone. 

\----

Marinette couldn’t get those two little words out of her head. Yes, Adrien had been drugged and loopy, but… the way he’d said them. Like he was constantly saying it in his head, if not out loud. 

_ Love you. _

So simple. Like it was just a fact of life. Whenever she thought of it, it gave her chills and butterflies at the same time. 

But was it real? 

When they were together, she often felt like it could be real. The way he looked at her, and the way he treated her… it was hard to quantify, but it definitely felt like they had a connection a step beyond mutual admiration and respect.

But then when she was alone, she would start to doubt it. Sometimes it was hard to remember- she felt so grown-up compared to her past selves- but they were only sixteen and seventeen. Was it even possible to fall in love so young? Real love, something that would last beyond a few months? Her old insecurities would rear their ugly heads and try to convince her that, while he might like her a lot, he probably didn’t love her. His drugged mind had probably just made him think she was Nathalie, or his dead mother, or even his father. And that thought terrified her, because her own feelings were getting stronger every day. And again, she didn’t know if it was real love. She hadn’t felt like that before, but realistically, she hadn’t experienced a lot of things before. All she knew was that she wanted to spend time with him, and wanted to make him happy all the time. But was that romantic love? Or merely friend love?

So she stayed quiet about it. But sometimes, when they were together, she caught herself studying him, trying to figure out from his expressions if he’d really meant it.

\----

Adrien and Marinette were on a date, enjoying their magic ice cream from Andre (peach and mint chocolate chip for Marinette, blackberry and strawberry for Adrien) one warm April afternoon when Adrien repeatedly caught Marinette giving him strange looks he couldn’t quite place. It wasn’t the first time she’d done it, either. Ever since the attack a few months ago, he had sometimes caught her looking at him with an expression that seemed to intersect bemusement, fondness, and incredulity. But before, she’d always changed her expression quickly or looked elsewhere before he could ask, and if he  _ did _ ask, she would blush and change the subject. It was very confusing, and today he decided to ask and not take no for an answer.

So he stopped them by a bench near one of the bridges with a nice shady spot under a tree and sat them both down.

“You know,” he said, holding her hand and smiling a bit awkwardly. “You sometimes get this really strange look on your face when you look at me, but you never tell me why, and… I think I’d like to know what that’s about.”

Marinette looked down at her ice cream and smiled. “It’s nothing bad, Adrien. It’s just…” she trailed off, then glanced up with a half smile. “You know, when you got your arm broken, they had you on some pretty strong painkillers at the hospital.”

“I remember,” Adrien said, wondering where this was going.

“Well, before you went home, do remember I came to visit you?”

“Kind of, yeah?”

Marinette blushed a little, looking back down.

“Oh no, what did I say?” Adrien asked, heart sinking a little and already blushing with embarrassment.

“That’s the thing,” Marinette said, a bit breathlessly. “You were a little out of it, almost asleep by the time I left, and it just... slipped out when you said goodbye. Like, you’d thought it often enough that you were used to it. It was normal to you.” She paused a moment. “I never forgot it.”

“Mari…” Adrien whined, wanting to be put out of his misery. He could see her hands shaking, and gathered them into his, wondering what awful thing he could have said to scare her that much.

“You said you loved me,” Marinette said, calmly, but with a kind of vibrancy to her voice that he usually only heard when she was really into a design, or other creative venture.

It was like she’d thrown a bucket of cold water all over him. 

“Oh. Uh…” 

_ Crap, _ he thought.  _ What do I say? Does she think I’m a creep, now? That I’m obsessed with her or something? Seriously, it was too early! Who says they love someone two months into the relationship?! We’re still teenagers, for crying out loud! Should I apologize? But then she might not think I meant it, or that I don’t mean it anymore… _

Her giggle cut through his panicked thoughts, popping them like soap bubbles, and he realized she wasn’t scared. She was… excited? Her eyes were shining, lips smiling, and... god, she looked so  _ cute _ in the off-the-shoulder peasant blouse and shorts combo she’d picked for their date. 

“You look terrified,” she said when he didn’t immediately respond, trying to cover her sudden anxiousness with a laugh. “You… do you… was it just the- the drugs talking?” Adrien’s mouth dropped open, but she rushed on before he could say anything. “I mean, I totally understand it if it was- you had a broken arm, and surgery, and… Anyway, it’s fine. We’re young, it’s not like we’re going to fall in love in our first relationship! … right?”

Adrien caught the slight quiver of her chin, and tried to decide on a course of action. Gentleness seemed to be the best course, so he took the remains of her ice cream and set it to the side, along with his own- if it fell off the bench, he could always buy more. Anyway, ice cream wasn’t what he wanted to taste at the moment. Slowly, carefully, he cupped her face, caressing the left side slowly. The bruises had long since faded, but he could still see them in his mind’s eye. He leaned in, lips meeting hers in a soft kiss. He pulled away just enough to see her expression.

“It wasn’t just the drugs talking,” he said quietly. “I… I didn’t want to say anything because it was so new-  _ we _ were so new. And then Lila happened, and the trial… it didn’t seem like the right time. Plus, I didn’t know how  _ you _ felt. But my feelings haven’t faded- if anything they’ve gotten stronger. So…” He took a breath, then said the words he’d been holding back for so long now. “I love you, Marinette.”

His intent was to wait- wait and watch her face while she thought through her feelings. But instead she surged forward, breaking his hold on her face so she could wrap her arms around his neck and kiss him passionately. Slightly stunned, it took him a moment to respond, but when he did he wrapped his arms around her, pulling her as close as possible, and never mind that they were in public. She seemed to approve, deepening the kiss, and it was all he could do not to lose his mind from the rush and the sensations that coursed through him. 

Fortunately, before Adrien could do much more than return her kiss enthusiastically, she pulled away. He retained just enough recollection of their surroundings that he let her, though his hands lingered on her waist. Marinette seemed dazed too, given how she couldn’t seem to look any higher than his mouth. She took a shaky breath that he copied.

“Well… I guess that means I should tell you that I love you, too,” she said, caressing his cheek. 

“Yeah?” he asked, a smile breaking through his stunned expression.

“Yeah.” Marinette finally met his eyes, and he… he could have drowned in the love and affection he saw swimming in them. “So what happens now?” she whispered.

Adrien wanted nothing more than to spirit them away from all eyes so they could properly explore this new dynamic, but… he took a deep breath and let it out slowly. There would be time for that later. A lot of time, perhaps. Months, years… a whole lifetime, even.

“Now… we finish our walk,” he said, standing and gently pulling her up, too. “And… maybe talk about it?”

A smile bloomed on her lips. “Okay.”

And that's what they did.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thank you to so many of you who started at the beginning with me and stuck it out, and to those of you who just found it and binged the whole thing in one epic sitting.
> 
> I still can't believe the response this little story of mine got, but I'm so glad you all seem to think it's worth reading and recommending to your friends.
> 
> I'm taking a little break from Miraculous fandom writing so I can work on some of my previous Nano novels I never did finish. Hopefully, with all this practice at ending things, I can get one finished and actually published. 
> 
> I'll be coming back though! You can probably expect a few one-shots here and there when I take a break from the originals, but I won't be starting anything too terribly long for a while.
> 
> So y'all keep reading and writing, and I'll be around! :)


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